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Manesar units plagued by poor power supply
Members demand changes in Master Plan
Mishap victim’s kids to get Rs 3.4 lakh
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Infertility expert stresses early screening of poly-cystic ovaries
‘Land mafia to gain from Master Plan provisions’
Brinda visits Nithari, urges DM to monitor each case
Bomb scare on Delhi-bound flight
One held for autolifting and drug trafficking
Centre ready to consider modification pleas
Gurgaon officials told to meet development targets fast
Prof K. K. Aggarwal elected CSI president
Scourge of bonded labour devastates even Delhi
Year 2006 had more fatalities but fewer road mishaps
It was bitingly cold again
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Manesar units plagued by poor power supply
Manesar (Gurgaon), January 6 The dominant issue appeared to be erratic supply of power, which was said to be giving a body blow to the functioning of the industrial units. The poor supply of power was hampering the operations of the units which resulted in their not meeting the production demands and commitments, including those on the export front. With the result, the manufacturing units were losing their credibility, especially in foreign countries, the Association regretted on the occasion. In fact, the IMT Industrial Association recently wrote a letter to Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda narrating the plight of the industrial units. Speaking on behalf of the Association, its general secretary Manoj Tyagi highlighted the problems ailing the units. According to him, there was only four to six hours of power supply every day and even then it was erratic. As there was no light at night, the anti-social elements stalked the streets of sprawling IMT campus spread over more than 1,700 acre. Ironically, as per the Association, even though there is meagre supply of power—only for four to six hours a day, the electricity department has directed the consumers to pay for electricity at ‘minimum rates’. The Association questioned the logic of the policy when the units did not consume even minimum electricity due to long hours of power cuts. It demanded scrapping of the policy and introducing principles of payment of bill as per consumption. What added an edge to the discourse by the industrialists on the theme of overall importance of industrialisation in the national context was the presence of the Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune Group of Newspapers, Mr H.K.Dua, as Chief Guest, at the function. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Dua extolled the virtues of industrialisation as it guaranteed jobs and opened a vista for many employment opportunities. According to him, even after nearly 60 years of Independence, the country’s vast demographic swathe continues to be plagued by unemployment, poverty and lack of proper education. He extolled the IMT Manesar as an industrial hub and said that it could be replicated in other parts of the country in the overall interest of the nation. He also said that the government should redress the grievances of the industry. The Association also complained about the absence of PCR/traffic police and medical facilities, including hospital, first-aid, etc on campus and the lack of public transport system from Gurgaon to Manesar. It also demanded facilities of rehabilitation centre, houses, community centre, hospital, dispensary, etc, for the economic weaker sections of society. |
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Members demand changes in Master Plan
New Delhi, January 6 The Delhi Urban Development Minister, Dr A. K. Walia, said: “The Master Plan should not be such a voluminous document containing detailed guidelines on schools, hospitals, police stations and on Floor Area Ratio (FAR). These issues be addressed in the Zonal and Local Plans for the reason that norms can vary from area to area. The guidelines for areas like Walled City and Trans-Yamuna have got to be different from those prevailing in South Delhi.” Moving the proposal to discuss the Draft Master Plan, Dr Walia said, “Draft of the MPD envisages additional requirement of 200-220 square kilometre land over the next 15 years to accommodate additional population of one crore. But it is not clear as to how much of the urban extension area is to be used for residential purposes and how much for other development activities.” Giving suggestions to make a change in the draft Master Plan, he said that the issue of housing had been inadequately addressed. Due to constraint of space, the city has to grow vertically rather than horizontally. This requires modification in the existing proposal and permitting the construction of more floors to accommodate more people. Single houses should be allowed to construct four floors and building height should be 15 metre. Group Housing Societies should be allowed to construct eight to 10 storeys. “Unauthorised colonies should be regularised on “as is where is basis” as was done in 1977”, Dr Walia said. The Urban development Minister said that Master Plan did not address the problem of colonies developed before 1962. The Master Plan Draft has given all powers for formulating guidelines for sanction of layout plans, redevelopment schemes, urban renewal schemes, and multi-storey buildings in all land use categories to the technical committee of the DDA. This provision makes preparation of plans highly restrictive. These powers should be given to local bodies. Diagnostic centres or pathological laboratories or imaging centres should be taken in the categories of professionals and be allowed on residential areas irrespective of plot sizes. Discussing the draft Master Plan, Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly, Prof. Jagdish Mukhi said that it was a “death warrant for Delhiites”. “It is also a good essay with no substance.” Opposing the provisions of “demolition and reconstruction” of unauthorised colonies given in the draft Master Plan, Prof Mukhi said that this was not practical. Around 35 lakh citizens reside in these colonies. Where will they go if these colonies have been demolished. All unauthorised colonies should be approved unconditionally, he demanded. He said that 2183 roads had been notified for the mixed land use. The remaining roads should also be notified for mixed land use. Basement should be allowed for godown purpose. The government has a list of domestic industries. Likewise it should have a list of domestic trades, Prof Mukhi demanded. Demolition and reconstruction of entire walled city was like a dream which will never be true. This should be stopped immediately. Nationalist Congress Party MLA Ramveer Singh Bidhuri demanded that agricultural land located on border areas of the national Capital should not be shown as green areas in the Master Plan. Delhi is expending and in future, people may construct houses on these lands. If the land is shown as green area, unauthorised colonies will come in existence in connivance with the DDA and other authorities. He said that recommendations of the Srivastava Committee constituted for village development be implemented and unauthorised colonies be regularised without any condition. Delhi is a national capital. Offices of most of major newspapers and TV channels are located in Delhi but in draft Master Plan, no media centre has been shown. One thousand acre land should be demarcated for media centre, he demanded. |
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Mishap victim’s kids to get Rs 3.4 lakh
New Delhi, January 6 It stands established that the fateful accident took place due to rash and negligent driving of the offending vehicle being driven by Som Dutt which caused fatal injuries to Rajeshwar Narain Sharma (deceased), said Additional Sessions Judge Sanjay Garg. The court held the United India Insurance Co Ltd primary liable to pay the compensation, being the insurer of the vehicle, and asked it to pay Rs 3.4 lakh with an interest of seven per cent to the three children and mother of Sharma. It relied on the testimony of two eyewitnesses who deposed Dutt was rash and negligent in his driving of the scooter which collided with a cycle in his attempt to jump a traffic signal, which resulted in the fatal fall of Sharma from the pillion seat of the vehicle. Dismissing the defence contention that Sharma had fallen down from the scooter as he was inebriated, the court said there was no concrete evidence on record to establish if the deceased was intoxicated when the accident happened. The deceased’s three children, Kiran, Neelam and Manoj, had requested the court to expedite the proceedings as they had already suffered a lot owing to the death of their mother Pushplata and grandfather Ram Sharan Sharma during the trial. The prosecution built its case on eight witnesses, including two eyewitnesses whose testimonies were found trustworthy and consistent by the court. Sharma had fallen from a scooter being driven by Dutt on August 9, 1986, and died in a hospital due to brain injuries. |
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Infertility expert stresses early screening of poly-cystic ovaries
New Delhi, January 6 According to Dr Archana Dhawan Bajaj, Consultant, Infertility and Reproductive Medicine, Global Fertility Centre, Global Hospital and India IVF Centre and Research Institute, “Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is the most common total body endocrine disease that affects women of reproductive age from puberty to menopause. It affects approximately 10 per cent of women in the reproductive age group.” She further explains, “Both males and females produce hormones called androgens, referred to as male hormones, which play a role in sexual functioning of the body. In girls with PCOS, the ovaries produce higher levels of androgens than normal. This interferes with egg development and release. Some of the eggs develop into cysts which are little sacs filled with liquid and instead of being released during ovulation, these cysts build up in the ovaries and even get enlarged, hence the name poly-cystic ovaries or Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome.” “Women with infrequent menstrual periods, no menstrual periods, and/or irregular bleeding are likely to have PCOS. Increased growth of hair on the face, chest, stomach, back, thumbs, or toes acne, oily skin, or dandruff may be some of the signs associated with PCOS,” says Dr Archana Dhawan Bajaj. Infertility or inability to get pregnant because of not ovulating, weight gain or obesity, usually carrying extra weight around the waist are part of the Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. Few cases may present male-pattern baldness or thinning hair patches of thickened and dark brown or black skin on the neck, arms, breasts, or thighs skin tags or tiny excess flaps of skin in the armpits or neck area. Stressing on the importance of early diagnosis, Dr Bajaj emphasises, “If PCOS is not diagnosed early and treated
properly it can lead to problems like type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, abnormal bleeding from the uterus, and occasionally, cancer, too.” The most important step is screening the condition. PCOS can be easily diagnosed through blood tests and ultrasound. Therefore, the chances of having serious side-effects are reduced. Fortunately, today PCOS can be treated using various medications and other techniques like weight loss and exercise. These are very effective in lessening many of the health conditions associated with this disease, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. |
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‘Land mafia to gain from Master Plan provisions’
New Delhi, January 6 “The present residential, rural, health, commercial and trade structure of Delhi will be destroyed. Lakhs of buildings will be demolished. Unemployment will increase and people in large number will be compelled to migrate out of the national Capital,” Dr Harsh Vardhan alleged. Addressing a press conference, he alleged that the government had decided to hand over valuable lands, construction work in residential, commercial and trade areas to the land and builders lobby. “The land and builder mafias will have the right to acquire the land in Delhi, undertake construction work on it and sell buildings, shops etc. at the price of their choice. The role of the DDA will be limited to recovery of facilitation fee and framing impractical schemes,” he claimed. He further claimed that due to this decision, the cost of houses, shops, offices etc. would increase manifolds. He pointed out that no provisions had been made for relief from sealing and demolition drives in the new Master Plan. It is clear from the statements of the monitoring committee that the sealing would continue this year also. Dr Harsh Vardhan suggested that those areas that were declared professional and commercial before 1962 Master Plan should be given the same status. Those running commercial activities on custodian property be given ownership rights, he added. Commercial activities at DDA flats should be allowed and ambit of professional activities be increased, he demanded. |
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Sheila launches pulse
polio programme
New Delhi January 6 Expressing concern over the reported cases of polio in the Capital, she said her government would try to make the city polio free at the earliest. She added that awareness programme would be intensified and more concentration would be given to uncovered areas in slum colonies. Ms Dikshit claimed that Delhi was on the threshold of eradicating polio but the occurrence of fresh cases, mostly because of the migration of polio affected children from neighbouring states, had posed a fresh challenge. Observing Delhi to be a pioneer in pulse polio immunisation programme as the state government initiated it, she hailed it as a step that earned Delhi a lot of international acclaims. She exhorted parents to come forward and bring their children upto five years of age for immunisation at polio booths. Delhi government has made elaborate arrangements this time. Even after the one-day immunisation programme, designated teams would visit door-to-door to ascertain children who were left out and ensure administering of anti-polio drops to them. It had become imperative to repeat dose of polio drops regularly and upto ten to 12 times after the occurrence of fresh cases. Ms Dikshit said that around 27 lakh children would be administered drops at 7,500 polio booths in Delhi tomorrow. Around 24,000 health personnel and workers have been deputed for this purpose. Polio booths have been set up at railway stations, ISBTs, 57 metro stations, airport, all important parks and temples and Pragati Maidan to administer drops to transit families. International organisations like- UNICEF and NGOs like Rotary and Lions Club and 1,250 RWAs are rendering their co-operation this time. Around 370 routes have been earmarked to ensure delivery of drops to polio booths. Ms Dikshit described polio as one of the deadliest enemy of childhood. Companies like- MTNL, Airtel, NDPL and BSES are also propagating pulse polio message. Services of local Imams of mosques had been taken to dispel misconceptions about pulse polio programme. Their recorded video message was being telecast by cable channels. FM Radio and electronic media were also being utilised for this purpose. |
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Brinda visits Nithari, urges DM to monitor each case
New Delhi, January 6 Last week, the party had organised demonstrations and delegations against the authorities demanding a CBI probe into the matter. Ms Karat also met the District Magistrate and urged him to ensure that compensation is granted to the five families whose children have been identified but are still being denied compensation. Talking about the increasing number of parents coming to the area with details of their missing children, she urged the DM to immediately collect the number of children missing from the district in the past two years and monitor the details of each case. However, the country expects the truth behind the horrific Nithari killings will be unearthed soon as the Mulayam Singh government has entrusted though quiet late the task to the CBI. The CBI should ensure it to be a time bound inquiry and look into all aspects including the suspicion on the involvement of a bigger gang linked to the organ trade. The criminal negligence of Noida police in the investigation of children and adolescents missing from the area has been compounded by the utterly callous manner in which the UP government has responded to the national outrage and the PWD minister Shivpal Singh Yadav observed it as a ‘choti moti bat’ that happens daily. It is shameful to learn that even though 29 children and adolescents were reported missing from Nithari in the past two years, the administration showed criminal indifference. The missing children belonged to poor migrant workers from Bihar and Bengal. |
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Bomb scare on Delhi-bound flight
New Delhi, January 6 The high-voltage mid-air drama began shortly after 10.30 last night when the Boeing 767 aircraft carrying 300 passengers and crew was approaching Delhi, sources at the airport said today. Mirasi Muslim Bilal, an Indian who boarded the flight from Vienna, suddenly started shouting he was carrying several bombs with him and would blow up the plane after which the captain of the aircraft sent a distress signal. Sources said Bilal had consumed alcohol in excess during the journey and was demanding more, but the crew refused to serve him, saying that the aircraft was about to land. On being refused drinks, Bilal threatened he would blow up the flight, they added. Airport officials said they received an emergency call at 10.45 pm, minutes before the plane was to land. The aircraft landed at 10.56 pm under full emergency conditions and bomb disposal squads of the CISF and the Delhi Police rushed to the plane and carried out an extensive search after which the claim was declared a hoax. Bilal was immediately taken into custody by airport security personnel and handed over to the police. He had been booked under Section 506 of the IPC (criminal intimidation), sources added. |
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One held for autolifting and drug trafficking
New Delhi, January 6 Three stolen vehicles and 20 gms of smack have
been recovered from his possession. When a jeep was signaled to stop near Kalindi Kunj area for routine checking, the driver of the jeep- Khan could not produce any supportive document of the vehicle and 20 gms of smack was recovered from him. He allegedly admitted of having been involved in at least four cases of auto lifting and one case of Arms Act in New Friends Colony area. All stolen vehicles have been recovered at his instance. The accused has pursued LLB course from Haryana and is involved in auto lifting since a long time, said a police official. |
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Centre ready to consider modification pleas
New Delhi, January 6 Highly placed sources in the Union Urban Development Ministry said the government itself believed all possible efforts should be made to provide maximum possible relief to such categories. During a key DDA meeting on Thursday here, the non-official members asked for legalising gyms and pre-nursery schools functioning from all floors, and not just the ground, in residential zones of Delhi. Also, they demanded more categories of shops be added to the list of commercial establishments being exempted from court-ordered municipal action. |
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Gurgaon officials told to meet development
Faridabad, January 6 The district officials were told to act swiftly and take certain decisions to avoid any disruption in the services provided by the government. The occasion was the second Divisional Development Review Meeting of the state government departments chaired by the Chief Secretary, Mr Prem Prashant, which was held at local mini-secretariat here today. The Deputy Commissioners and senior officials of five districts, including Faridabad, Gurgaon, Mewat, Mahendragarh and Rewari attended the meeting. Disclosing that the Haryana government had adopted a new policy on outsourcing, the Chief Secretary asked the district officials not to await any recruitment from the top to meet the requirement of any personnel in any department He said the department heads had been authorized to recruit staff on daily wages or contract basis to meet the requirement of the job of any nature. Claiming that this had been done to ensure proper speed and completion of several development programmes and to check any inconvenience to the people on this count, he however, cleared that such employees were not liable to be confirmed in government service. Expressing concern over the hurdles faced by some of the projects in the region and district, the top functionary of the state government reportedly cautioned against laxity in the duty by officials. He said the absence from duty of any officer would not be tolerated and complaints regarding the poor work of officials would be dealt strictly with. Stressing the need to improve the basic services in cities like Faridabad and Gurgaon, Mr Prashant said that the authorities should work to provide efficient services and facilities, including transport, public toilets and phone. It may be recalled that cities like Faridabad are still to have many such facilities, though the population and land rates have gone up sharply over the years. Announcing that the districts having a remarkable performance in the area like checking of the female foeticide and women development would be awarded cash prizes each year, he said it was duty of the district administration to seek public participation in such programme. While the district offices and government departments were asked to clear their power bills, the department was directed to ensure metered supply in those areas where there were no meters. It is revealed that there are several offices and colonies in the district where the supply is free and no bills are paid and complaints of involvement of officials and staff are common. |
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Prof K. K. Aggarwal elected CSI president
New Delhi, January 6 Headquartered in Mumbai, the CSI is one of the largest and most professionally managed associations of and for information technology (IT) professionals in India. The society exclusively works in the scientific and educational arena directed towards the advancement of theory and practice of computer science and IT. The organisation has been around for four decades and has grown to the size of some 30,000 members, professionals with varied backgrounds, including software developers, scientists, academicians, project managers, CIOs, CTOs and IT vendors, to mention a few. The society also aims to work to ensure that the international impact, which computer scientists and information technologists of India have made the world over, is not only maintained but further improved. Professor Aggarwal, although associated with the formal education system for past four decades, has always been a staunch believer in interaction between industry / the professional world and the academic fraternity. He has earlier been the Sectional President of IT Section in Indian Science Congress Association, Chairman, DOEACC (a society fully owned by Ministry of Communication and Information Technology), and also the President of the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers. He was conferred the fellowship by the Computer Society of India in 2003 and his election to the level of President in a short span is a recognition of his potential by the computer fraternity all over the country for his significant contributions. After a gap of several years, an academician has been elected to this position. This is bound to result in more intensive communication between the working professionals and the academic community. |
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Scourge of bonded labour devastates even Delhi
New Delhi, January 6 All those who think that the practice belongs to the years gone by or some dark places of the country like Bihar or Orissa seem to be in the wrong. According to the survey done by the Morcha on the insistence of the Delhi Government, bonded labour continues even in the country’s Capital. Though the survey has been conducted specifically in the NCR region, it holds true for other parts of the country, and maybe in a worse possible way. In Punjab, having close to 50 lakh migrant workers in agriculture and other unorganised sector, the Minimum Wages Act, the Contract Labour Act, the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, the Child labour Prohibition and Regulation Act are all being rampantly violated, says Bandhua Mukti Morcha president Swami Agnivesh. In Delhi alone, as many as 35 lakh labourers are working in the unorganised sector, he says, adding that for the country as a whole the figure works out to be a whooping 37 crore labourers who are on the verge of bonded slavery. According to Swami Agnivesh, all labourers in the Capital are migrants and of the 35 lakh labourers working in the unorganised sector in Delhi, almost 90 per cent are bonded labourers. He says two judgements of the Supreme Court—Asiad Workers case (1982) and the Bandhua Mukti Morcha vs Union of India and others (1984), specified law in terms of Article 141 of the Constitution to the effect that “where a person gets a remuneration which is less than the current notified wage under the Minimum Wages Act, 1984, for the particular scheduled employment, the labour or service provided by that person clearly falls under the ambit of the term “forced labour under Article 23 of the Constitution”. “Moreover, where a labourer is made to provide forced labour, he is presumed to be a bonded labourer in terms of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976,” he said, adding that less than 10 per cent of the workers in the Capital get the minimum wages they were entitled to, thereby making the other 90 per cent labourers bonded as per the law. And even if the workers are willingly accepting lower wages, it would still be a violation of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act. “The apex court has clearly specified that labourers accept to work under lower wages only due to their harsh economic conditions,” he adds. For women in particular, the situation is even worse as hardly 1.6 per cent women are able to draw the minimum wages they are entitled to, says researcher Prem Bahukhandi, who has helped with the survey. |
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Year 2006 had more fatalities but fewer road mishaps
New Delhi, January 6 As many as 7,970 people were injured last year compared to 7,991 people in 2005. The facts came out through the annual data presented by the Delhi Police. On the other hand, to drill some traffic sense in the denizens, the Delhi traffic police issued more than 41 lakh challans in 2006 compared to about 39 lakh the year before that. More than Rs 46 crore were collected by compounding fines last year compared to around Rs 45 crore in 2005. The challaning data showed a disturbing trend, a whopping 103 per cent increase in people caught using mobile phones while driving, more than 26 per cent increase in minors caught driving and over 21 per cent increase in drivers found tipsy. The traffic police, meanwhile, took shelter behind figures of growing number of vehicles in the city and stated this was responsible for more accidents, traffic congestion and reduced vehicles speed, resulting in journey delays and inconvenience to motorists. The road network had increased from 8,380 km in 1971-72 to 31,183 km in 2005-06 (3.7 times) while the number of vehicles had increased from 2.14 lakh in 1971-72 to 50.36 lakh in 2006 (24 times), it was said. The density of vehicular population per km in 1972 was 39, which had now increased to 162. |
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It was bitingly cold again
New Delhi, January 6 It was mainly a clear sky today and a thin layer of mist enveloped the Capital, it added. The city had experienced the coldest morning of the season yesterday with the minimum temperature dipping to 4.2 degree Celsius, three degrees below normal. Yesterday’s maximum temperature was 19.3 degree Celsius, two notches below the normal level. The weatherman said the minimum temperature would continue to hover around five degree Celsius for the next couple of days. |
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