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Elected women want 50 pc quota
in governance
CPM to mull over poll strategy
Farooq, Naidu, Badal may attend INLD rally
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Rajnath attacks UPA govt’s Pak policy
Mulayam refutes Sonia’s
charge on Central funds
Centre calls off ceasefire with ULFA
Now, book railway ticket online on cash payment
Exit interview must for bank official opting to quit: SC
Centre, Bihar bicker over Buddha’s ashes
Arunachal signs pacts with NPTC, NHPC
Sibal unveils film to popularise science
Royal Society for Arts launches India Chapter
Aga Khan lays stress on
cross-cultural education
Two more arrested in sati case
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Elected women want 50 pc quota
in governance
Dehra Dun, September 24 More than 750 elected women representatives from panchayats in Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana attended the interface organised by the Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK) in collaboration with its sister concern, Panchayati Rule and Gender Awareness Training Institute (PRAGATI). “We want women to be part of Vidhan Sabhas and the Lok Sabha through reservation as has been done in the case of the panchayats,” said Dr Avdhash Kaushal, chairman of the RLEK. It was pointed out by the elected representatives that the traditional role of a panchayat of dispensing justice on the doorstep without adjournments was missing today and “we have become mere contract workers”. The declaration announced a move to pressurise the Centre to draft a nyaya panchayat Bill at the earliest. Panchayats needed to be given clear powers and responsibilities regarding disaster management. It was pointed out that panchayati raj institutions were familiar with the grassroots realities and could be an effective source for providing relief and rehabilitation at the time of a catastrophe. The declaration sought that auditing of registers and work in panchayats should be done by an independent agency. The elected representatives sought access and control over natural resources for supervision and monitoring. It was also sought that the measurement book filled for any developmental activity was beyond the understanding of elected women representatives owing to its technical language. This had led to rampant corruption by officials. “We demand that the form be simplified to involve panchayat functionaries,” the declaration said. The open forum is a unique annual event organised by the RLEK and this was the eighth edition of the workshop to promote networking, transparency and accountability in self-governance. Ms Aditi Mehta, Joint Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, said : “I am inspired by listening to you. It is great to hear a demand for the formation of a nyaya panchayat coming from elected women representatives. Women must first learn to find a solution to their problem themselves. Justice H.S. Abbas, Lokayukta, presided over the valedictory function. Acknowledging women as the pillar of honesty and justice, he motivated them to come forward and involve themselves in the development work of their villages. Ms Ruchi Kukreti, chairperson of PRAGATI, said devolution in the panchayats was the essence of democratic
decentralisation.
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CPM to mull over poll strategy
New Delhi, September 24 The inaugural session of the party’s 85-member Central Committee meeting took up organisational matters this morning while the discussions on the political and economic issues would be addressed in the remaining days, party Politburo member Sitaram Yechury told newspersons. The party general-secretary, Mr Prakash Karat, the Chief Ministers of West Bengal and Kerala, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Mr V.S. Achutanandan, respectively, and other senior leaders — Ms Brinda Karat, Mr Nilotpal Basu and Mr M.K. Pandhe, the party floor leaders in the Lok Sabha, Mr Basudeb Acharia and Mr Mohammad Salim and the party MPs, Mr Hannan Mollah and Mr P. Madhu, are attending the meeting which is being held at the party headquarters — A.K. Gopalan Bhavan. “The party’s poll strategy in the 2004 general elections paid handsome dividends to the party as it exhibited the strongest showing in any general elections,” Mr Yechury said. He added that the party had succeeded in achieving all its three goals — of keeping the communal forces at bay, strengthening the Left and focusing on the secular agenda on the national political scene. “The unfolding situation provided an opportunity to the Left to intervene effectively and change the political and economic discourse of the nation. “It is only because of the Left pressure that the UPA government decided on at least six pro-people measures — the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the ban on selling of profit-making PSUs, enactment of the Right to Information Bill, the Tribal Policy Bill and quota for OBCs in institutes of higher learning,” he said. Mr Yechury stressed that it had also led to a change in the pro-US foreign policy as seen in the context of India’s stand on the NAM in Havana and signing of various agreements with Brazil and South Africa. Asked specifically whether the CPM would go along with Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party in the UP polls, Mr Yechury said the issue would be discussed tomorrow. “We will finalise our stand only after the state unit gives its view,” he said, adding that the current political scene would also be discussed tomorrow. On the National Campaign on Public Issues, launched last month, he said the party had received a “huge public response”, which gave impetus to the Jan Sangharsh (mass struggle).
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Farooq, Naidu, Badal may attend INLD rally
New Delhi, September 24 A lot of significance is being attached to the rally which is being held at Meham in Rohtak which is the home district of the present Chief Minister. Senior INLD leader Ajay Singh Chautala said here that the rally, being held to mark the birth anniversary of Chaudhary Devi Lal, would be attended by Farooq Abdullah, Chandrababu Naidu, Parkash Singh Badal, Madan Lal Khurana and Uma Bharti. Leaders from the AGP and ruling alliance in Nagaland were likely to attend it. The INLD hopes to start building an atmosphere in the state against the Hooda government through the Rohtak rally. The place has close association with Devi Lal who had represented it in Parliament when he became Deputy Prime Minister. Devi Lal had been elected to the state assembly from Meham. Mr Chautala said the rally was being held in Rohtak on the demand of people there. The party had held a rally at Panipat some months back. Apart from the controversy over land transfer to Reliance Industries Limited for SEZ, INLD leaders are expected to raise the issues of law and order, water and power scarcity and "derogatory" references to Jats in
NCERT books. With a section of Congress leaders expressing resentment over the land tarnsfer to RIL, the INLD will target the ruling party over the “differences from within” on its policies. The INLD has been holding rallies to mark the birth anniversary of Devi Lal.
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Rajnath attacks UPA govt’s Pak policy
New Delhi, September 24 In a written statement, Mr Rajnath Singh said Mrs Gandhi’s statement in the Congress CMs’ conference in Nainital warning of polarisation of society while dealing with terror and the Prime Minister endorsing her statement revealed that the vote bank politics of the Congress overrode the immense danger of frequent terror attacks destabilising the nation. “The UPA government’s behaviour of acting like a crybaby after the Mumbai train blasts in July leading to suspension of talks and then suddenly coming up with a joint statement to create anti-terror mechanism and resume dialogue has reduced the gravity of the terror situation,” the BJP president said. He said this had made India a “laughingstock” before the world community. The BJP leader said the Prime Minister’s warning of more suicide attacks on religious, economic and other sensitive targets was an “alibi to protect the UPA government’s inaction, incompetence and total capitulation in the face of mounting terror attacks from across the border.”
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Mulayam refutes Sonia’s
charge on Central funds
Lucknow, September 24 Calling Ms Gandhi’s charge as baseless, he said the funds running into hundreds of crores being received by his government from the Centre for implementing the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, Rajiv Gandhi Rural Electrification and the Prime Minister Road schemes was totally wrong. Addressing a massive rally at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gorakshpur University to distribute cheques to numerous beneficiaries of the unemployment allowance and Kanya Vidya Dhan scheme, he made it clear to the cheering crowd that the funds for these two schemes had been raised completely from the state’s own resources.
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Centre calls off ceasefire with ULFA
New Delhi, September 24 “Suspension of operations against ULFA has been called off with effect from today because of continued violence, extortion, etc by its cadres. Operations had been suspended some time back because of possibility of direct talks with ULFA towards peace process,” an official spokesperson for the Union Home Ministry said here today. Today’s decision brings to an end the ceasefire announced on August 13 and extended thrice. In Nainital, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said there were certain conditions that “must be satisfied” by ULFA for the peace process to produce “purposeful results.” “We have expressed our willingness to discuss all issues but there are certain preconditions which must be created for these discussions to yield fruitful results,” Dr Manmohan Singh told a press conference in Nainital. The Centre has been seeking a written commitment from ULFA about joining direct talks. Whereas, ULFA, which had initially responded positively to the peace overtures, demanded that five of its top leaders held in jail in Assam should be released before any talks were held. Meanwhile, sources said Army formations had launched operations against ULFA strongholds in Tinsukia and Jorhat in upper Assam and in Nagaon, Barpeta and Darrang in lower Assam. The resumption of operations against ULFA was aimed at preventing its cadres from regrouping. “ULFA cadres are continuing to hit soft targets by killing and abducting tea garden officials and targeting government installations. Therefore, the operations have been relaunched,” the sources said. Spokesperson for the ULFA-nominated People’s Consultative Group Arup Borbora said the body would meet in Guwahati in a day or two to review the situation. Noted Assamese author Indira Goswami, a key mediator between ULFA and the government, struck a positive note saying National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan had informed me that the peace process would continue despite the withdrawal of the truce.
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Now, book railway ticket online on cash payment
New Delhi, September 24 The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has tied up with IT firm Sify to enable passengers to book tickets online from over 34,000 iWay cyber cafes across 154 cities in the country against cash payments. Online railway ticket bookings on the IRCTC site has been available to customers who either have a credit card or a net banking facility, limiting the number of people who could actually use this facility. The vast majority of Indians, however, still prefer to make cash payments for tickets, goods or services. So it was imperative that a means be found for the large number of Indians without a credit card or a net banking facility to be able to make online reservations for cash. Mr P.K. Goel, Managing Director, IRCTC, said, “This path-breaking initiative is aimed at making railway e-ticketing easier and convenient for our customers across the country. For they no longer have to worry about using credit cards or having a net banking facility. Instead, they can simply make the online bookings and make convenient cash payment at Sify’s iWays”. Mr Raju Vegesna, MD & CEO, Sify Limited, said, “It is the innovative solutions like this that will grow e-commerce in India and I am extremely pleased that we have been able to work with the IRCTC to make this possible”. Now all it requires is a visit to the neighbourhood Sify iWay, where the café administrator can book the railway ticket online and finalise the itinerary based on availability. The customer needs to pay cash against the ticket and collect the ticket printout. In case of ticket cancellations, the customer will have to follow the standard cancellation process of the IRCTC.
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Exit interview must for bank official opting to quit: SC
New Delhi, September 24 “Voluntary retirement from the bank’s service is not automatic. It is preceded by an exit interview,” ruled a Bench of Mr Justice H.K. Sema and Mr Justice P.K. Balasubramanyan in a judgement on the bank officers’ service conditions. The court said the specimen of exist interview form was prescribed in a 1993 memorandum on the service conditions of bank officers. It prescribed detailed criteria to be followed in the exit interview before granting the request for voluntary retirement. “The format of the exit interview is, therefore, not an empty formality… reasons for leaving the bank’s service, date of interaction or interview held, name of the interviewing authority, his designation have to be clearly specified,” the court said. It said same importance was attached to the exit interview that was given to the other eligibility criterion to become a bank officer, including educational qualification, date of promotion to the officer grade, details of the branches he had served and the last five postings in such branches. The ruling was laid down by the apex court while allowing an appeal of the Bank of India management against the Andhra Pradesh High Court order that had set aside dismissal of its grade-II officer Mohammed Nizamuddin, found guilty of remaining absent for three year without sanction of leave, claiming false LTC of Rs 39,780 and misappropriating a loan of Rs 80,000 taken from the bank’s Secundrabad branch. When the bank initiated disciplinary action against him after an official inquiry in which he refused to participate despite repeated notices, he sent in his resignation. But when the bank took a decision to dismiss him after finding him guilty, he first challenged it unsuccessfully before the bank’s appellate authority and later filed a writ petition in the high court. The high court held that dismissal from the service in his case was too harsh a punishment given by the bank authorities. But the apex court did not agree with the high court’s finding and termed its judgement “unsustainable in the law”. “The gravity of the misconduct must necessarily be measured in terms of its nature,” the court said, pointing out that a middle management officer of grade-II, which was a responsible post in a bank, absenting for three years was undoubtedly detrimental to the public interest and there could not be a more grave misconduct than this. But when an inquiry was conducted against him, he simply had chosen to take a stand that he had resigned from the service and did not prefer to participate in the inquiry proceedings. “This conduct is also unbecoming of a responsible officer of a bank,” the court ruled.
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Centre, Bihar bicker over Buddha’s ashes
Patna, September 24 This became evident when, in the 2,550th year of Lord Buddha’s birth anniversary, which is now being celebrated worldwide, the UPA and the NDA governments started quarrelling over the holy urn containing the ashes of Lord Buddha. Incidentally, the ashes of Lord Buddha have been kept in Patna Museum since 1986. While the UPA government now wants the relic to be shifted to Vaishali, the NDA government in Bihar is reportedly not in the mood to shift it from Patna. On Saturday, the Union Rural Development Minister and senior RJD leader, Mr Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, also an MP from Vaishali, charged the Nitish government with sitting on the proposal. Mr Singh alleged that the Nitish government was not in the mood to discuss this issue despite the assurance given by the Union Tourism Ministry to provide funds for setting up a museum in Vaishali. The Minister said the state government was asked to allot 1.5 acre of land while the rest of the requirements would be met with by the Tourism Ministry. He further said the Union Tourism Minister, Ms Ambika Soni, had already written a letter to Mr Nitish Kumar on September 11 seeking the latter’s cooperation on the issue. The shifting of the holy urn from the Patna museum has been a topic of discussion for the past decade and local legislators, including Mr Singh, have raised the issue in the past too. Historically, Lord Buddha had spent several years in Vaishali, the first seat of republic established in India by Vajji-Lichchavi tribes,to spread his message of love and peace before attaining enlightenment. The urn was excavated from Vaishali in 1956 and later kept at three places — Patna, Piprawa (UP) and Amrawati in Andhra Pradesh. The excavation at Vaishali was done by eminent historian A.S. Altekar. Mr Singh was of the view that setting up of the proposed museum in Vaishali would help it gain more importance, keeping in view Lord Buddha`s bond with the place. On its part, the state government reportedly has several plans to showcase the relic. The Nitish government is also considering placing the urn at the proposed heritage park to be developed on the land of Bankipore Jail in Patna. Besides,the Nitish government has already worked out elaborate plans to promote Rajgir-Bodhgaya-Gaya circuit on the international tourism map. During his visit to Bihar on Thursday, the National Investment Commission (NIC) Chairperson, Mr Ratan Tata, supported the state government’s plan to set up golf courses near Rajgir-Nalanda, besides setting up of five-star hotels to promote tourism in the area.
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Arunachal signs pacts with NPTC, NHPC
New Delhi, September 24 “We are in touch with some other states with hydel power potential and will soon approach Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Planning Commission to consider increase in the state share in Central hydel power projects from 12 per cent to 18-19 per cent,” Chief Minister of the state Geong Apang told The Tribune. Talking on the sidelines of a function held here to announce the MoUs between the state and the NTPC, the NHPC and NEEPCO, he said, “ The state has recently signed MoUs with three private power developers — Reliance Energy, the Jaiprakash Group and DS Construction — for building five hydel projects in the state with a combined power generation capacity of 4800 MW. They have agreed to offer 15-19 per cent free power to the state, besides around 15 crore for local area development.” The state has signed MoUs with NTPC for Kameng-I (Bhareli-I) HEP ( 1120 MW), Pare HEP (110MW). NEEPCO will build two projects-Etalin HEP ( 4000 MW) and Attnli HEP ( 500 MW). Two agreements were signed with the NHPC for constructing hydel projects Tawang- I and II (1500 MW). Besides, the state and the NHPC will form a joint venture to build 3000MW Dibang Valley Mulit-Purpose projects. Considering reluctance of the state government to sign MoUs, the state owned companies have, however, agreed to provide one paise per unit generated from the projects for local area development fund.
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Sibal unveils film to popularise science
New Delhi, September 24 The film is a part of a year-long campaign announced by the ministry and the National Geographic to promote science. The 48-minute film, produced by the All-Time Productions in association with the National Geographic channel, will showcase the spirit of innovation and discovery in the fields such as biotechnology, drugs, medicines, stem cells, agriculture, genetic engineering, education and bioprocessing. The film will premiere on the National Geographic channel on September 26 at 9 pm. It will be telecast four times during the first month and subsequently once every month in the following year. The film will also be telecast on Doordarshan. It will be telecast in Hindi and English initially and later dubbed in other regional languages to reach to a wider audience. The film will be promoted through programme promos on the National Geographic channel and The History channel. The channel will run informative scrollers, factoids, vignettes and 15 short films throughout the year on Indian science and technology. Specially commissioned Science Safari merchandise, including DVD sets, CD sets, T-shirts and bags will be given to school children during screening of the film in various public and private schools. Mr Sibal said the effort through the film was to let people discover simplicity of science
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Royal Society for Arts launches India Chapter
New Delhi, September 24 Britain’s 250-year-old Society focuses on five key areas encouraging enterprise, moving towards a zero-waste society, fostering resilient communities, developing a capable population and advancing global citizenship. The British High Commissioner to India, Mr Michael Arthur, while speaking on the launch here on Thursday, said the Society was all about innovation and ideas, of trying to find new ways of doing things, of encouraging people to work together to find new ways of helping society. Speaking on the occasion, Britain- based businessman, Mr Raj Loomba, who played a key role in establishing the RSA India Chapter, said arts and education should be the foundation on which we could build a decent, healthy society.
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Aga Khan lays stress on
cross-cultural education
Hyderabad, September 24 Speaking at the foundation laying ceremony for The Aga Khan Academy here, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims advocated the need to enhance the value of pluralism. “We are often told these days that tension and violence in much of the world grows out of some fundamental clash of civilisations, especially a clash between the Islamic world and the West. I disagree with that assessment. In my view, it is a clash of ignorance which is to blame,” said the Paris-based leader, who claims to be a direct descendant of Prophet Muhammad through his cousin and son-in-law Ali, the first Imam, and his wife Fatima, the Prophet’s daughter.
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Two more arrested in sati case
Chhatarpur (MP), September 24 Villagers Paltu Rajput and Shripal were arrested this afternoon for murder and instigating Kuria Devi to commit sati, Superintendent of Police Chanchal Shekhar said. Ten persons, including four sons of Kuria Devi, were earlier arrested on the same charges after she jumped into the pyre of her husband Siyaram Rajput on September 20, he said. Cases of murder and under the Prevention of Sati Act were registered against as many as 30 persons, 16 of whom were named in the reports. A magisterial probe was also being conducted into the incident, he added.
— PTI
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