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Cong mulls President's rule in UP
DMK to get conditional support from ally
Reliance plans big spending to double gas output
UK Foreign Minister arrives
Varanasi blast case hearing on Nov 15
UGC chief for policy on removing disparities
Andhra celebrates 50 years
1.1 m homes mooted for Mumbai slum dwellers
NCM chief asks PM to help NRI Sikhs
Wheat MSP inadequate, says BJP
Norway to continue Lanka peace efforts
2 kidnappers killed in encounter
New IAF Vice-Chief takes over
10 more CRPF battalions to be raised
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Chautala seeks Kalam’s help on
RIL-SEZ issue
New Delhi, November 1 In a memorandum submitted to President A P J Abdul Kalam, the former Chief Minister sought his personal intervention for the cancellation of the joint agreement signed on June 19, 2006 between the Haryana Government and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) for setting up one of the biggest SEZs in the state. Fertile land in Haryana has been bought by the state-run Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) from farmers at throwaway prices and is being given to RIL for developing a SEZ, the INLD Chief said in the memorandum. “The INLD records its uncompromising opposition to setting up of such a precedent where land acquired by the Government is transferred to private developers,” it said adding “the land that has been handed over to RIL for Rs 290 crore, actually costs more than Rs 1 lakh crore in the market.” “This shocking figure underlines the extent to which the farmers, who owned 1395 acres of land, have been robbed of their rightful dues. The unmerited benefit has been
accrued to RIL, which is further poised to make a killing of unimaginable magnitude by way of real estate business in the name of SEZ,” it said. “Moreover as per the provisions of this SEZ, the State of Haryana, instead of getting any monetary benefit, would be at great loss in many ways such as exemption of stamp duty, serve tax, sales tax, electricity duty, excise and custom duty, etc for a period of 15 years. Thus, the farmers and the state both stand robbed by the deal entered into by the Government of Haryana and the RIL,” it said. “Even more shocking is the fact that the 37 SEZs that have been proposed and cleared by the state government are to be set up in the National Capital Region (NCR). It is imperative that there is no barren land in this region, which could be put to more productive use by the development of the SEZs. On the contrary, this is a fertile land which yields multi crops all round the year. The are is rich in producing food grains but also yields vegetables, fruit and fodder to sustain the economy of the region,” it said. “SEZ is not an issue of Haryana alone but entire country. We have sought urgent intervention of the President in the issue so that the rights of farmers can be protected,” Mr Chautala told newspersons after meeting the President. Mr Chautala said they also informed the President that the Reserve Bank of India also gone on record saying SEZs in their present form would entail an annual loss of Rs 1,75,000 crore in central taxes.
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Cong mulls President's rule in UP
New Delhi, November 1 There is a strong section in the Congress which believes that President’s rule ought to be imposed in Uttar Pradesh before next year’s Assembly polls, as Mulayum Singh Yadav is known to use the administration to his advantage. This section has endorsed Jan Morcha’s open call for placing UP under Central rule. Alternatively, there is a view that such a move would only generate sympathy for the Samajwadi Party leader who is, in any case, faced with a strong anti-incumbency factor. The Congress’ dilemma is constantly reflected in the party’s confused stand vis-a-vis the Mulayum Singh government. On one hand, it uses every occasion to attack the current dispensation in UP while on the other hand, it is reluctant to withdraw its support to it. This confusion was again on display today when Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi lambasted the UP government for yesterday’s violence, stating, that it was reflective of the anarchic state of affairs there. However, Mr Singhvi had no convincing answer when asked about the Congress party’s continuing support to Mulayum Singh. “We are not supporting the government in that sense...our support is issue-based,” he said, adding that, withdrawal of support is only a formality. He maintained that the Congress position vis-a-vis the Samajwadi Party is well-known and a mere letter will not alter the ground reality. Although the Congress leadership has instructed its state unit to go all out against the Samajwadi Party, it is constrained from taking that final step as it does not want to be accused of creating fissures in the secular front. The fact that the Samajwadi Party is supporting the UPA government at the Centre is another reason for not withdrawing support to the SP-led government.
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DMK to get conditional support from ally
Chennai, November1 Not only the CPM and CPI, which are constituents of the DPA, have come down heavily on the DMK but its best ally the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) has withdrawn unconditional support to the state government. The PMK founder S. Ramados said his party's support to the DMK government would be issue-based from now on. He, however, made it clear that the PMK would not function in a way that would cause the fall of the DMK government. Mr Ramadoss said PMK legislators would sit in the Opposition and clarified "we will be functioning as a responsible Opposition, taking up people's causes. We will support all good measures of the government and will oppose all anti-people measures". The divide between the two parties became wider as the PMK charged the DMK with "great betrayal" during the recent civic body elections in Tamil Nadu. Mr Ramadoss even alleged that several second-rung DMK leaders had openly worked against the PMK in the civic elections and that the party could not contest the polls in many places allotted to it. He went on to say "the mental agony of the party cadres, who are vexed with the behaviour of DMK's second-rung leaders, made me come out in the open. When we are betrayed, how can we keep quiet. We wanted the public to know about it". The DMK runs the government in Tamil Nadu with the support of the Congress, the PMK, which has 18 members, and the CPM and the CPI in the 234-member Assembly. As such, the PMK's support is crucial. When the government was formed, the PMK had extended unconditional support to the DMK government. The PMK, which has 18 members in the 234-member Assembly, provides crucial outside support to the DMK which has 96 MLAs and runs the government with support from other allies including Congress, CPM and CPI. At the time of formation of the government, the PMK had given a letter of unconditional support to the Governor. He said throughout the state, attempts were made not only to defeat the PMK nominees but also other constituents of the alliance like the Congress, CPM and CPI, and even compared the DMK and the AIADMK, saying, "At least in the AIADMK with whom we fought two elections, except its leaders Jayalalithaa and Sasikala, others are good. In the DMK, it is the other way round. Only the leaders Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and its General Secretary K Anbazhagan are good." In the DPA, the CPM and the CPI were also angered over the violence "unleashed by the DMK workers during the civic body elections" and moved court. Mr Varadarajan of the CPM also said, " the malpractices by DMK men on October 13 is shocking". The Congress, which has 34 MLAs, remained silent, but many of its legislators are disgruntled as they were denied ministerial posts following the decision of the party command. However, the allies of the DMK might bark but never bite as the PMK is part of the Central Government and any decision on the issue of withdrawing support to the state government will be taken by the respective party high commands of the Congress, the CPM and the CPI.
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Reliance plans big spending to double gas output
New Delhi, November 1 RIL had earlier proposed investment of $ 2.47 billion to produce 40 mmscmd for 7.5 years from discoveries—Dhirubhai 1 and 3 (in the D6 block) — out of a total 34 wells. “The company last month filed revised field development plan (FDP), proposing 5.2-billion investment in bringing gas to shore by July 2008,” an industry source said. The increase in cost has been mainly due to a 250 per cent jump in rig chartering rates. An RIL spokesperson was not immediately available for comments. The company has made a dozen discoveries from the 15 wells drilled in the deepsea block KG-DWN-98/3 (also known as KG-D6) but only the first four discoveries - Dhirubhai 1, 2, 3 and 6 - have been declared commercial. Only the discoveries declared commercial would be developed in the first phase. Sources said first gas will now land in July 2008 at a gas processing facility near Kakinada through a 35-km, 24-inch diameter pipeline. Reliance holds 90 per cent interest in Block D6 where it estimates reserves in excess of 14.5 trillion cubic feet. Niko Resources of Canada has the remaining 10 per cent. Sources said the increased volumes would be sold at a price of 4-4.5 dollars per million British thermal unit, thereby increasing the government revenues from the field. Since the government had recently rejected its proposal to sell gas to Anil Ambani Group firm at 2.34 dollars per mBtu on concerns of government revenue being hit, the company now proposes to raise sale price. Sources said the life of the field has been estimated at 18 years. After the first 7-8 years, production will decline unless more wells are drilled and new reserves added. Reliance Industries had, in its development plan, estimated an Original Gas-In-Place (OGIP) of Dhirubhai 1 and 3 at 8.3 trillion cubic feet. However, international consultants D&M, commissioned by Reliance to independently verify the reserves, had put the figure at 6.174 trillion cubic feet. PGS, another international reservior certifier, put the OGIP at 6.384 trillion cubic feet while Petrotel estimates were the most optimistic at 10.318 trillion cubic feet. The proposed initial development covers only 4.5 per cent of the total block area (7,645 sq km). “Considerable upside potential exists in the form of already known discoveries such as Dhirubhai 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 16 and other possible discoveries from the large area of the block yet unexplored.”— PTI
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To raise $2 b for project
Mumbai, November 1 RIL said a meeting of its Board of Directors would be held on November 9 for approving a proposal to raise funds by way of Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds, syndicated loan or fixed or floating bonds.
— PTI
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New Delhi, November 1 Ms Beckett, speaking in advance of her first visit to India since becoming Foreign Minister, described India as “an important partner” for the UK. “Our bilateral relationship is underpinned by solid economic and people to people links. Cumulatively the UK is the third largest investor in India and India leapt last year from being the eighth to the third largest investor in the UK. Over one million people travel between the two countries every year, and our large British Indian community is one of the most successful in the UK. As our two Prime Ministers agreed, the relationship has never been better.” All her official talks are scheduled for tomorrow. Ms Beckett will have talks with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee tomorrow morning at Hyderabad House, to be followed by delegation-level talks. She is scheduled to call on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the afternoon. After this, she will hold meetings with union ministers for Home and Finance, Mr Shivraj Patil and Mr P Chidambaram respectively, and Leader of Opposition, Mr L K Advani. Ms Beckett will also be travelling to Hyderabad and Mumbai to look at development work and the growing business links between the two countries. UK is the 3rd biggest inward investor in India (cumulatively since 1991). Top sectors for UK FDI to India include power, oil & gas, telecom and service industries. The UK is India’s fourth largest trading partner. In 2005-06, Indian investments into the UK rose by 110%, with India rising from No.8 to No.3 in the UK’s investors’ chart.
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Varanasi blast case hearing on Nov 15
Varanasi, November 1 Special Judge (Essential Commodities Act) Narendra Singh Rawal, hearing the three cases—Sankatmochan temple and Varanasi Cantonment Railway Station blasts, besides the pressure cooker-borne explosive recovery case—fixed November 15 as the date for the next hearing in the case. The judge also extended by two weeks the judicial remand of Waliullah. Earlier, Waliullah, lodged in Central Jail here, was brought to the Varanasi district jail amid tight security to be produced before the judge. Waliullah also submitted an application before the court seeking time till next hearing to hire a counsel to contest his case. The government counsel, Pradip Saxena and Munna Lal Yadav, however, objected to Waliullah’s plea, arguing that the court had already given sufficient time to the accused to hire counsel. Subsequently, the court rejected Waliullah’s plea and instead ordered the appointment of a ‘Nyaymitra’ to contest his case on November 15. Charges are likely to be framed against Waliullah on the next hearing in the case. At least 18 persons were killed and over 100 others wounded when two powerful blasts rocked the Sankatmochan temple and Varanasi Cantonment railway station within a span of 15 minutes of March 7 evening.—UNI
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UGC chief for policy on removing disparities
New Delhi, November 1 He also advocated the need for bringing 8500 non-affiliated colleges under the purview of the commission to improve the standard of college education. Referring to disadvantaged groups, he said the SCs, the STs, the OBCs and the Muslims in general and women from these group in particular, suffer most due to the lack of access to higher education apart from the those engaged as wage labour in the rural and urban areas. “We thus suffer from multiple disparities. Therefore, there is need for comprehensive policy of inclusiveness, which will reduce disparity among them. Given the uniqueness of each of these groups, namely social groups like the SCs, the STs from all religions, the OBCs, religious minorities like the Muslims in general and women in particular and wage labour and the poor among them, it is necessary that the constraints of each of these group are addressed separately and group specific policies and schemes are developed to bring them on par with others”, he pointed out. Addressing the ASSOCHAM-ICRIER joint conference on ‘Globalisation and higher education in India’, Prof Sukhadeo Thoart, Chairman, UGC said out of a total of 14000 colleges, nearly 61 per cent colleges were without proper assessment for quality and should be examined seriously. He said accredited colleges constituted only 20 per cent of the total colleges. This called for a much bigger task of assessment and accreditation on the part of National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), he said. Prof Thoart said out of a total of 317 universities, about 50 per cent had been assessed for minimum quality, about 40 per cent have been assessed for more elaborate criteria of quality of the NAAC. The UGC Chairman also stated that there were considerable inter-state variation in the level of higher education. While the gross enrolment ratio at the aggregate level is about 13 per cent, it is more than national average in states like Nagaland (38.6 per cent), Goa, (27.3 per cent), Kerala (24.2 per cent), Manipur (24.7 per cent), Himachal Pradesh (20 per cent) and Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry (with 18 per cent). Prof Thoart, however, said there had been several-fold increase in the educational institutions and number of teachers. With this, an improvement in the level of higher education in terms of aggregate access, and the quality of higher education was expected. Dr Ram S Tarneja, Chairman, ASSOCHAM Committee on Education, said in 1947, only 0.2 million students enrolled for higher education which rose to 10.5 million in 2005-06, which was very low in view of our high population, and stressed the need for Centre and state governments partnership to promote higher education in the country.
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Andhra celebrates 50 years
Hyderabad, November 1 Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy reviewed a colourful parade and witnessed
cultural programmes at the official function marking the occasion at the NTR stadium. here. He listed the steps taken by his government during the last two and a half years, especially in the irrigation and agriculture sectors. He reiterated his commitment to developing the state into ‘harith Andhra Pradesh’, or a prosperous Andhra Pradesh. Stray incidents of violence were reported from a few places in Telangana as TRS activists took to the streets and tried to stop buses and trains to press their demand for statehood for Telangana. Over 200 leaders and activists of the party, including about a
dozen legislators, were arrested. The Hyderabad-New Delhi Andhra Pradesh Express was stopped by TRS activists for an hour at the Secunderabad railway station early this morning. The train was stopped again at
Warangal. Shops and business establishments remained closed in several parts of the region, especially in TRS strongholds like
Karimnagar, Warangal and Nizamabad. The TRS called for a bandh, saying that the day should be observed as ‘Telangana Betrayal Day’. On November 1, 1956, Telangana, which was part of the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad, was merged with Andhra Pradesh. It was the first Indian state formed on a linguistic basis with Hyderabad as its Capital. At the official function, Reddy said the state was formed with the blessings of ‘Telugu
talli’ (Mother Telugu). While arguing for a separate state, TRS president K Chandrasekhara Rao had recently stated that he did not believe in
‘Telugu talli’ and that there were no cultural bonds between the people of Telangana
and the rest of the state. Mr Reddy said his government was doing its best for the all-round development of all three regions of the state. He said special efforts were being made for the
development of backward areas and to uplift economically and socially weaker
sections of society.
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1.1 m homes mooted for Mumbai slum dwellers
Mumbai, November 1 As per the plan prepared by a task force set up three years ago, a floor space index of 3 to 4 would be permitted so that high rises can be constructed to free up land across the city. The move is expected to free up as much as 70 per cent more land across the city. Apart from repealing the Urban Land Ceiling Act, the government also proposes to turn salt pan lands and some part of land occupied by mangroves into development zones. The Maharashtra government is already pressing for an amendment to the Coastal Regulation Zone laws to facilitate construction on such lands. The project estimated to cost $ 40 billion is expected to be financed by international funding agencies. In addition, slum dwellers who move over to buildings would not be required to partly pay for their new houses. At present the Slum Redevelopment Project in Mumbai provides incentives to builders who construct free houses for slum dwellers. The builders benefit by constructing houses for sale in the open market. As per the new proposal, slum areas would be divided in to different zones and entire zones would be auctioned to builders who will bid to construct houses. However the slum dwellers won’t have any say in the choice of the builder. The draft plan has been put up for examination by representatives of slum dwellers, NGOs, etc.
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NCM chief asks PM to help NRI Sikhs
New Delhi, November 1 In a letter to the Prime Minister, Tarlochan Singh has requested that the Ministry of External Affairs to issue instructions to ``all our Missions to approach the respective governments on this issue so that such incidents do not occur.’’ The former NCM Chief said Sikhs are settled as non-resident Indians in almost all parts of the world and need the help of the Indian Government to live with dignity. The Rajya Sabha member has drawn attention to some instances in Europe where the Sikh community has faced trouble for asserting its religious rights. He has cited the case in France where the demand of the Sikh students to cover their hair has still not been accepted. He has also mentioned the case won by a Sikh woman in the United States who had lost her job for insisting to wear her Sikh dress and also the recent incident in Denmark where a Sikh student was penalised by the authorities for wearing a kirpan’. He has urged the government to take up the issue with the visiting Prince of Denmark.
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Wheat MSP inadequate, says BJP
New Delhi, November 1 “The BJP is not happy with government’s decision to give farmers Rs 750 per quintal for the wheat as it is totally inadequate. The UPA government pays Rs 900 to Australian farmers but refuses the same to the Indian farmers,” BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar told newspersons here. “The root cause of the agrarian crisis is non-remunerative prices, which result into mounting debt burden and even suicides in worst scenario,” Mr Javadekar said. Demanding entirely a “new deal” for Indian farmers to save them from the persisting agrarian crisis, the BJP leader said the government should come forward with a “one-time settlement package” for the farmers, treating agriculture as a sick industry. He criticised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s reported refusal to consider the waiver of loan for the small and marginal farmers.
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8-year old’s wish to be cop fulfilled
Hyderabad, November 1 An NGO, Make-a-Wish Foundation, came forward to help Mahak realise his aspiration. They approached DGP Swaranjit Sen, who readily agreed to ‘appoint’ Mahak as a Station House Officer for a day. On Tuesday, the D-day, Mahak was provided with all the paraphernalia of an SHO, the full uniform, including a dummy service revolver. He met the DGP at the latter’s office, where he formally received orders to assume charge as the SHO of Jubilee Hills Police Station. The little Inspector was driven in a Rakshak vehicle to the station, where the policemen, including the Inspector, SIs, and constables formally welcomed their new boss with a salute. The excited lad was led straight to his office room, where a name plate proudly declared “Mahak Kothari, Inspector of Police.’ The lathi-wielding boy spent more than an hour in the station, going round the place and even talking to a petty thief. “We were moved by his desire to be part of the police, and hence agreed immediately when a request came to fulfil the little boy’s dream,” the DGP said. Later, speaking to reporters, Mahak said he would bring all goondas to book if he were to become a police officer.
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Norway to continue Lanka peace efforts
New Delhi, November 1 The visiting Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon told reporters that his country was playing the role of a facilitator in many countries, including Sri Lanka. Prince Haakon said Norway and India could work together in Sri Lanka as also in the UN and other international fora. Mr Raymond Johansen, Vice Foreign Minister of Norway, said his government had taken some new initiatives which were "quite successful," for peace in the island nation. Mr Johansen is accompanying Crown Prince Haakon on a six-day visit to India.
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2 kidnappers killed in encounter
Bangalore, November 1 The police was on the lookout for two more members of the six-member gang which
kidnapped businessman Nasir Khan from his house in Hoskote in Bangalore on Ramzan on October 24, Police Commissioner N. Achyuta Rao told newsmen here today. The encounter took place on the banks of a lake where the kidnappers had planned to dump the body of Nasir Khan after killing him, since his family members were not keen on paying the ransom. The police also recovered two firearms and the car used by the culprits. The gang had demanded a ransom money of Rs 2 crore and reduced it to Rs 85 lakh during the last three days, as the family members expressed their inability to raise the huge amount. The victim's family had approached the police. A police team under the leadership of Assistant Commissioner of Police swung into action and caught one of the suspected members Tippu of
Neelasandra. — UNI
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Infant booked for robbery
Muzaffarpur, November 1 The officer in charge of Minapur police station has registered a case against the infant, Praveen Kumar, charging him, his father Shashi Kant Rai and one Pappu Kumar Rai of Nehalpur village of being involved in the bus robbery, Superintendent of Police Ratna Sanjay said. He, said the case, which was registered on September 22, was filed on the basis of the statement of the bus conductor Lal Babu Rai of ‘Chanda Travels’. “The police had to compulsorily register a case on the version of the public and the reality will be known only after the investigation; “he pointed out. The infant’s name could be removed from the FIR only through a supervision report by the concerned deputy superintendent of police, he added.
— PTI
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New Delhi, November 1 He succeeded Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani who retired after 40 years of distinguished service. Meanwhile, Air Marshal G S Chaudhry took over as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Training Command, and Air Marshal P V Naik VSM as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Air Command. Commissioned into the Indian Air Force in June 1968 in the fighter stream. Air Marshal Gokhale saw active operations during the 1971 Indo-Pak war He is a recipient of the ‘Ati Vishisht Seva Medal’ and the ‘Vayu Sena Medal’. — UNI
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10 more CRPF battalions to be raised
New Delhi, November 1 The raising of these additional battalions would also help relieve the Border Security Force (BSF) from its counter-insurgency role. The CRPF will start recruitment in January, 2007 for filling more than 16,000 constable-level vacancies against the new battalions and the normal annual vacancies, an official press note said here today.
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