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Govt yet to discuss OBC quota with deemed varsities
Pro-quota body seeks removal of AIIMS Director
Ministry for using EVMs in local bodies’ poll
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Vajpayee praises Communists at BJP meeting
Expert committee to review issues of VIPs’ security
Naval chief to review ongoing projects in Russia
Tharoor unfazed by Pak challenge School students meet after 58 years
Plea for Arjan Dev varsity
KBC under scrutiny for alleged rigging Adults fight over baby IAF to acquire 126 aircraft Students leave for US Brand Lalu ruling Bihar markets
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Govt yet to discuss OBC quota with deemed varsities
New Delhi, June 18 “Neither the ministry, nor the UGC has written to these universities to inform them that they will have to make necessary provisions to make space for the additional 27 per cent”, sources said. The issue did not figure prominently on the agenda of the two-day meeting of Vice-Chancellors of deemed universities in New Delhi on May 4 and 5. “The issue came up briefly, but was not discussed seriously and there was no mention of it in the minutes of the meeting”, the sources said. The UGC has sought feedback from Central universities on the additional grant they will need to meet the 27 per cent reservation for other backward classes (OBCs). The avoidable delay by the UGC in approaching private and deemed universities has put the Oversight Committee in a quandary. It has declared that reservation for OBCs will be implemented in one go and will be extended to all private and deemed universities. The tentative approach of the UGC has exasperated some Vice-Chancellors. The Vice-Chancellor of a deemed university in New Delhi said, “We have not been told anything on the reservation issue. We have heard that the government proposes to implement reservation in deemed universities, but nothing has come to us officially”. The Vice-Chancellor added, “There are many concerns that deemed universities have regarding increasing seats in one go, but nobody has cared to ask us. Not all of us are funded by the government. The costs will have to be worked out and space will have to be created, but no one seems concerned”. Mr Moily’s assurance that the government will go all out to make it easy for private players to implement the reservation policy has come as little consolation. “One cannot live by promises alone. The first step should have been discussion across the table. Since they have faltered on this one, we are not sure how they will make the process easy”, said the Registrar of another deemed university.
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Pro-quota body seeks removal of AIIMS Director
Chennai, June 18 “The AIIMS Director, the Superintendent and some faculty members of the institution instigated the anti-quota protests against 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in higher educational institutions and must be terminated immediately”, general secretary of the Doctors Association for Social Equality (DASE) G.R. Ravindrananth told a press conference here. On the demand by some Left organisations to exclude the creamy layer from the 27 per cent reservation, he said the DASE had requested the organisations to avoid such a demand as it could strengthen the anti-reservation groups and delay the implementation of reservations. The association, he said, also welcomed Tamil Nadu Health Minister K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran’s announcement that over 1,500 doctors selected through the state Public Service Commission would be appointed for filling vacancies in government hospitals and that 1,700 doctors appointed on contract would be regularised. Requesting the state government to avoid disturbing the contract doctors while appointing those selected through the TNPSC, Mr Ravindranath said the DASE wanted the government to regularise contract doctors from the date of appointment as temporary doctors for the purpose of seniority. — PTI
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Ministry for using EVMs in local bodies’ poll
New Delhi, June 18 In its action taken report on recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice Ministry , it has been stated that while lending the voting machines to the local bodies to make the elections foolproof, certain terms and
conditions needed to be fulfilled by civic bodies. The state Election Commissions of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tripura and Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Daman and Diu had already allowed the use of electronic voting machines in local bodies' election on case to case basis. In fact, the State Election Commissioners of almost all states had been pressing upon the Law Ministry for quite sometime to make the use of electronic voting machines in local bodies' election compulsory and had been demanding the supply of more machines to meet the requirement. Though the Union Government has increased the non-plan expenditure for providing voting machines or improving their quality from Rs 100 to Rs 300 crore during the current financial year, whether it would facilitate their use in the local bodies' poll, was yet to be seen. The work on the upgradation of voting machines had been completed by two manufacturers, the Hyderabad-based ECIL and Bangalore-based BEL in consultation with the Election Commission and the Law Ministry. “Before approving the upgraded machines for use in the elections, these are being technically evaluated by an expert committee,” the ministry sources said. The Election Commission had come to the conclusion that there was an urgent need to upgrade the machines to make them foolproof. However, the Election Commission has expressed concern over the decrease in the budget for preparing the photo-identity cards for voters for 2006-07. While a sum of Rs 72.72 crore were provided in the non-plan expenditure for this purpose during 2005-06, the allocation was reduced to Rs 42.24 crore this year. The parliamentary panel has expressed concern over the slow process of issuing photo-identity cards by the Election Commission and felt that there was need to improve it to ensure that every elector got the cards by the next general
election. As per Election Commission figures, only 47.82 crore electors out of a total of 68.05 crore had been issued photo-identity cards till January 2005, which constituted only 69.87 per cent of the total electorate in the country.
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Vajpayee praises Communists at BJP meeting
New Delhi, June 18 While admitting that there was “something lacking” in his government which led to its defeat in the last Lok Sabha poll, the BJP patriarch in his valedictory address at the recent party national executive here, the highlights of which has been published in the latest issue of party organ, “BJP Today”, said it was true that the Communist parties were moving ahead fast. “We should not ape them, but should learn the art of getting renewal of mandate for our government. It is a great test to get back in power”. The BJP organ has quoted Mr Vajpayee as saying that the party may go on repeating hundred times that the NDA government performed well. “There is no doubt we indeed did well yet something was lacking. The people praised our work but did not renew their mandate to rule”. Pointing to the success of the Left parties, Mr Vajpayee urged that the BJP must also resolve to retain power in the states it was ruling and should work out a strategy for it. Pointing out that the BJP was running coalition governments in alliance with other political parties in some states, he said “strengthening a coalition government without weakening our self is a difficult task. We should ponder over it as well.” Mr Vajpayee was also apparently upset at some of the senior leaders leaving the party and made a particular reference to it. In an apparent reference to the exit of senior leaders like Uma Bharti, Babulal Marandi and Madan Lal Khurana from the party, Mr Vajpayee is quoted to have said: “Some people are leaving the party. Though they are not many yet they are leaving. We should introspect about it. We are ready to suffer any setback if there is no other way out, but losing someone from our ranks is a big loss to us.” The senior leader said there was an urgent need to get ready to move ahead with a sense of mutual affection and cooperation.“Whatever problems may arise we will face them collectively,” he said. The former Prime Minister said the success of its party's governments would depend on “how we behave with each other and what kind of people we take along.”
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Expert committee to review issues of VIPs’ security
New Delhi, June 18 It will also take up cases of individuals receiving threats and being denied security cover by state governments. The committee has been set up at a high-level meeting chaired by Home Minister Shivraj Patil. The committee will also submit to the Home Minister its recommendations on ways to make security less obtrusive and whether the cost of protection provided by the state should be shared by the people enjoying the cover. Reports here suggest that the committee is headed by Mr P.V. Bhide, Additional Secretary, looking after Centre-State relations in the Home Ministry. The committee will also look into creating a dedicated force for giving security to VIPs. Other issues which the committee will examine include whether there should be cost sharing of tax payers’ money on security cover by those being extended state protection. It has made it clear that VIPs who have been assessed by security agencies as possible targets of terrorists and organised mafia will not be charged for the protection. Reports say the expert committee will seek views from various security agencies and will submit its report within a stipulated time period. The committee has also been asked to give its recommendations to make security less obtrusive and less disturbing for the common man. The setting up of a single specialised force, possibly under the command of the Central Industrial Security Force, providing protection to important people, has been discussed. The proposal has been made in the wake of increasing demand from people, mainly in politics, for security cover, which can put additional pressure on security forces. With a single force dedicated to VIP security, the burden on paramilitary and police forces will be considerably reduced and they will be able to discharge their functions.
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Naval chief to review ongoing projects in Russia
New Delhi, June 18 Sources in the Navy here said that the Chief of Naval Staff would also be looking at the Russian-made IL-38 maritime reconnaissance or spy planes, which is among the frontrunner with the US-made P3C Orion reconnaissance aircraft, which the force is evaluating to bolster its strength on sea. The Navy is looking at adding at least eight of these reconnaissance aircraft in its fleet as a force multiplier and as part of its efforts to further improve its capabilities on sea. The Navy plans to buy reconnaissance aircraft to strengthen its depleted spy plane fleet hit by crashes of the IL-38 aircraft. The new planes being looked at are the upgraded version of the aircraft fitted with advanced Sea Dragons suits. The new aircraft are likely to be supplied by next year and would join the Navy's already purchased new fleet of three IL-38 aircraft. The Navy has already floated international tenders for it in December last and has already received the response from various countries with Russia and the USA being the frontrunners with the Boeing also putting on offer its P8 jet. However, sources said that the other most important task on hand for Admiral Arun Prakash would be to take a look at the progress being made on the purchase front of the three stealth-class frigates which India is looking at purchasing from Russia. This is important as India would be looking at installing the nuclear warhead capable supersonic Brahmos missiles on these frigates. India has already purchased three of these advanced warships and during the conclusion of the earlier deal, an option had been kept open for purchasing three more warships. The negotiations for the Rs 1,800 crore deal have been carried out at the Naval Headquarters and the Ministry of Defence level with their Russian counterparts and now only the approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security was needed. However, it would be the backup product support and the supply of spares for these frigates which would come up for discussion during the visit. During his visit Admiral Arun Prakash would also review the progress being made on the refitment and upgradation of the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov (Vikramaditya). He would also be visiting the MiG facility in Russia from where the Navy has already signed a contract to purchase 16 MiG-29Ks to be stationed on Admiral Gorshkov. Russia is scheduled to deliver the retrofitted Gorshkov to the Indian Navy by the middle of 2008, while the first of the Mig-29Ks are to be delivered by 2009. Admiral Prakash's visit also assumes significance in the wake of reports of Indian naval personnel undertaking specialised training in Russia in the running of nuclear submarines. There have been reports that India is planning to lease two Russian Akula class nuclear submarines.
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Tharoor unfazed by Pak challenge
New Delhi, June 18 He also dismissed the Pakistani contention that there was no tradition of a large country fielding its candidate for the post of UN Secretary-General or any country seeking both the top post of the world body and the permanent membership of the Security Council. “Not at all. On the contrary, the world deserves as broad a choice as possible,” Mr Tharoor, UN Under Secretary-General for Communication and Public Information, told PTI when asked whether he felt Pakistan’s move to field its own candidate against him could spoil his chances. “I welcome any qualified candidate and hope there will be many more, from Pakistan or anywhere else,” he said ahead of his talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and senior External Affairs Ministry officials during his three-day visit here to formulate “next steps” towards ensuring his win. On the Pakistan Permanent envoy to the UN Munir Akram’s contention that no country seeks the Secretary-General’s post as well as permanent membership of the Security Council, Mr Tharoor said these two issues were “completely unconnected”. A veteran at the United Nations, he said, “The Secretary-Generalship is about running the organisation... If I am elected, I would be accountable to 191 countries, not to any one (country).” He emphasised that the Indian Government has had a “long tradition of respect for the independence of international civil service, very much along the lines of India’s respect for the neutrality of bureaucracy at home where Indian civil servants are not expected to have any commitments to any particular political party and rather to Constitution of India.” Mr Tharoor sounded confident on getting support to his candidature from five permanent members of the UN Security Council, including China about whose backing doubts were being expressed in certain quarters here. “It would not be appropriate for any candidate to characterise views of any government but his own. So I am not going to characterise views of China or any other country. They will have to do so for themselves,” he said when asked about the possibility of Beijing backing him. He, however, underlined that the Indian Government “has not taken this decision (to nominate him) without taking into account the views of various governments.” Mr Tharoor was named by India as its candidate with an assertion that the next Secretary-General should be from Asia as per the principle of rotation. Incumbent Kofi Annan retires in December. — PTI
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School students meet after 58 years
Cuddalore, June 18 Emotions ran high and several of them turned nostalgic and took a trip down memory lane, recalling many happy moments when they were classmates. These rare school alumni were among the 80 students who had studied 10th standard in Raja Desingu Government High secondary school in 1958. Two of them, Jayaraman and Chakravarthi, had been making great efforts to trace their 80 friends for the past one year. But they succeeded in tracing the whereabouts of only 65 of them. The rest were either ‘presumed dead’ or their addresses not known. In a poignant letter to the 65 ‘classmates’, Jayaraman and Chakravarthi wrote “Adikkadi Varugirathu Ungal Nyabagam, Aanal Azhaippathil Thaan Thaamadham’’ (We think of you all the time, but the delay has only been in inviting you), calling them for a unique assembly at a marriage hall at Chengi. Only 43 of them turned up for the meeting today. Among them was a 67-year-old civil engineer, Mohammed Akbar, who flew down all the way from Dubai, to meet his very old friends. As the alumni of the 10th class came face to face, emotions flowed, recalling the fond memories of their school days. Six teachers, who took classes for them in 1958, and now in their mid-80s, also made it a point to attend, on receiving the invite. In their speech, the teachers, recalled that in those days they had taught not just formal lessons, but also imbibed in them qualities like love and affection. “It was this love and affection which have brought all of us together after so many years’’, one of the teachers said, in a moving speech. Some of the students, who had taken to teaching, had also brought along their students for the meeting. — UNI
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Plea for Arjan Dev varsity
New Delhi, June 18 Addressing a gathering to mark the 400th martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev, he said the contribution of the Sikh Gurus and other religions in the world should be studied to understand the enlightened path unfolded by them. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit informed the gathering that she would make all efforts to establish Guru Arjan Dev chair in Delhi University.
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KBC under scrutiny for alleged rigging
New Delhi, June 18 “Airtel is responsible for all such illegal activities and defrauding people at large, particularly those with Airtel connections, giving false statements in advertisements which the mobile holders believed in good faith and acted accordingly”, said the consumer who dragged it to the tribunal. Accepting the petition, the TDSAT has issued notices to Bharti-Airtel Ltd, which officially selected participants over the phone. Meanwhile, the company said it was not in a position to comment on the issue “since the matter is sub judice”. “The customer application before TDSAT is an issue relating to one of the customers. TDSAT is examining whether hearing the complaint of one individual customer is maintainable before TDSAT,” the company said in a statement. Airtel, also the official telecom partner of KBC-2, came out with ‘Shortcut to KBC,’ a promotional campaign where a person has to answer the computer generated questions after calling using an Airtel connection. For every right answer, a caller would get five points and 12 of its subscribers who score the highest would participate directly in “Fastest Finger First,” round. This contest ended on July 7, last year and a merit chart of scorers was to be made available at its franchisee. The company charged Rs 6 per minute for it, thrice the amount for a normal call. Meanwhile, a Bharti Airtel Limited spokesperson said in a statement that since the matter was sub-judice, they were not in a position to comment on it. “The customer application before TDSAT is an issue relating to one of the customers. TDSAT is examining whether hearing the complaint of one individual customer is maintainable before TDSAT. Since the matter is sub-judice, we are not in a position to comment on it,” the release said. — PTI
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Adults fight over baby Hyderabad, June 18 Nazia, who hails from Kerala, gave birth to a baby in the Borabanda area of the city. Nazia is said to be mentally unstable, and her husband left her even before the delivery. When Nazia refused to take care of the child by throwing it near the house of her neighbours, they took care for some time and later gave the baby girl to a childless couple living in Musheerabad. The couple, Bhikshapati and Swaroopa, named the baby Nikhita and took care of her. Seven months later, Nazia went to the SR Nagar police station and demanded her baby back. The police immediately called the couple to the station and persuaded them to part with the baby as Nazia was her biological mother. Barely 24 hours later, Nazia again stormed into the police station and abandoned the baby on the floor, saying that she did not want the child. The police found the baby to be in a bad shape. The police again called Swaroopa and gave the baby to her in the presence of some local residents. A year later, Nazia again made an appearance at the police station and demanded the baby back, now two years old. Since the law is on her side, the police again sent for Swaroopa. Swaroopa fell unconscious on hearing this. Later, she and her husband, an autorickshaw driver, came to the station with the baby and started pleading with the police to let them keep her as they had become very attached to Nikhita. The SR Nagar police said they knew that Nazia was not in a position to bring up the child. But they also could’t allow the adopted parents to have the child. Meanwhile, Nazia, who claims that she is now working at a beauty parlour, yesterday filed a case at the police station that her child was missing.
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IAF to acquire 126 aircraft
Hyderabad, June 18 Talking to newsmen here, he said the IAF was also acquiring three Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS). "There Hawk trainers will arrive this year, besides more air-to-air refuelling systems," he said. Stating that the sharing of information among countries would solve many problems, he said "They seek information on designs sometimes from other countries and other countries will also depend on us for their requirement". ACM Tyagi said rapid technological advances, which had ushered in dramatic changes in air power had, in turn, altered the mechanics and the very nature of warfare.
— UNI
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Students leave for US
Rourkela, June 18 Vilas Mishra, Amitav Mohanty, Soumya Ranjan Pati and Ashima Kar, who study at ISPAT English Medium School here, left on Friday accompanied by their guide B.B. Mathur after completing visa formalities in Kolkata, Rourkela steel plant sources said. After being invited to visit NASA, the budding scientists met the Orissa Chief Minister seeking his help in facilitating their visit to the US, for which Mr Naveen Patnaik sanctioned Rs 5.30 lakh, the sources said.
— PTI
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Brand Lalu ruling Bihar markets
Patna, June 18 After Lalu dolls and lozenges, it’s now the turn of a fodder product and cosmetic pack named after the RJD chief that are creating waves in the rural markets of Bihar. Cashing in on the popularity of Lalu Prasad, a new company has launched three qualities of animal feed under the brandname ‘Lalu Pashu Aahar’. “We are sending at least 200 tonnes of fodder to the markets everyday,” the company’s owner Satish Singh said today, claiming the products are doing handsome business. The animal feed is now being sold only in Bihar and may soon be marketed in other states and also be exported, he said.
— PTI
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