New Delhi, March 26
The amicus curiae appointed by the Supreme Court has strongly opposed the controversial 2021 Master Plan for Delhi notified by the Union Ministry of Urban Development on the ground that no proper infrastructural facilities had been provided to meet the ambitious plan.

In a report submitted to the apex court, senior counsel and amicus curiae Ranjit Kumar has said that the plan should not be approved by the court unless the government comes out with concrete assurances and steps to provide the required infrastructural facilities for implementation of the plan.

Though Kumar refused to divulge the contents of the submission made to the court, it is learnt that the amicus curiae had complained in the report that the government had not made any thrust in assuring proper infrastructural facilities like drinking water, toilets, power supply and roads to match the plan.

Unless there was a categorical assurance from the government of provision of these facilities, the MPD-2021 would create chaotic living conditions in the Capital, Kumar is stated to have said in his report.

On February 12, a bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat, C K Thakker and R V Raveendran on a petition from an NGO challenging the MPD had asked the amicus curiae to examine the Master Plan and file his response before the court.

The bench had maintained that any further orders on the sealing matter will be issued only after examining the submissions of the amicus curiae who was asked to put forward his suggestions, objections and deficiencies on the MPD within four weeks so that remedial steps could be taken.

Thereafter, the Centre, Municipal Corporation Of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and Delhi Government will file their rejoinder to the suggestions by the amicus curiae within two weeks, the bench said.—PTI

New Delhi, March 26
When the Delhi Development Authority demolished the shanties of Indira Camp and Ravi Das Camp in Vikaspuri here in May last year, it promised alternate plots to the displaced residents at Bawana in North-West Delhi. Nearly a year later, they are still awaiting allotment. Worse still, they have come to know that a land mafia has been buying out plots meant for them.

According to K.V. Krishnan of Delhi Shramik Sangathan, at least 34 corner plots have been bought by the land mafia. “The residents had not paid anything extra for the corner plot. The land mafia lured residents and bought these plots. Though the name of the resident against whom a ‘demand letter’ — which enables the residents to avail of the alternative plot — was issued remained unchanged on paper, the ownership has changed,” he said.

Demanding that there should be a general draw of plots, Mr Krishnan said there was a need to protect people from the land sharks who frequent the offices of the DDA and remain present even during the meeting of the slum dwellers with senior officials. “They also keep trying to convince us not to press for our rights,” he alleged.

The matter itself came to light during their meeting with the Director (Land Management) at DDA Headquarters in Vikas Sadan this past Thursday.

Earlier, the residents, who have been sitting on a peaceful dharna outside the office of the Deputy Director (Land Management), West Zone, since March 6, had been getting false assurances from the DDA.

According to Ramesh, a resident of Ravi Das Camp and part of the group that met the Director, the official concerned had ordered completion of draw of plots on March 6 itself, but the zonal office did not take things further.

“They kept offering one excuse or the other. First they claimed that the file had gone to higher-ups for necessary approvals. Then they said there were no independent judges to decide on the draw. Again, they began saying that they could not go ahead with the process as MCD elections had been notified,” said Ramesh.

The zonal office further told the residents that the draws would be held in four different categories — one for the general plots of 18 square metres, one for 12.5 square metres and then two more corner plots in both the sizes.

This was what raised the suspicion of the residents and they decided to meet the Director.

Director (Land Management) O.P. Misra said the draw of lots was most likely to take place by this coming Monday. —Agencies

Faridabad, March 26
The setting up of Haryana Rural Development Authority (HRDA) may not only help in regulating the balanced and fast development in rural areas, but will also help in containing the problems of encroachment and illegal land deals involving the community or government land in villages, officials feel.

There are thousands of land and revenue-related disputes lying pending at various levels in each district, awaiting disposal by the administrative and legal authorities, say senior government officials, who also claim that the move to establish such an authority would usher in a new phase of development in the state provided that the work was carried out without any political interference, and with a set time frame to achieve the target.

A bill in this regard was passed by the state assembly recently.

The officials said that while the objective of the proposed authority was to promote regulated growth of rural areas by setting up development zones, the duties of the HRDA would include providing amenities, sanitation and maintaining hygienic conditions, besides giving financial and technical support to the Panchayati Raj institutions for overall development. The proposed authority will maintain community assets and ensure cleanliness of the roads, drains and public places in rural areas.

It is also expected to look after the construction work of residential and housing facilities, particularly for the economically-weaker sections, and the distribution of house sites in development zones and maintenance of records.

A senior official of the state government said that the setting up of the authority would serve more than one purpose, as it may help in eradicating the problems related to land disputes over the ownership of community land, also known as ‘Shamlat’ or Gram Panchayat land in the villages.

There are hundreds of cases of encroachment or illegal deals in each block of every subdivision of the districts, where land worth several crores of rupees has been grabbed by ‘land mafias’, while a large number of cases are lying pending before the district revenue authorities or the civil courts.

The officials claim that these cases will be reduced considerably after the HRDA comes into being, as all the community land will get transferred or will be acquired by the authority, on the pattern of urban areas. 

New Delhi, March 26
The Delhi Bar Council decision to debar law graduates above 45 years of age from registering themselves as lawyers faces legal challenge as the Delhi High Court has sought an
explanation from it on its legality.

A Division Bench comprising Mr Justice Vikramajit Sen and Mr Justice J. P. Singh, after hearing a petition filed by a group of law students, has issued notice to the Bar Council and directed it to file its reply by April 4.

“The students contended the impugned rule violated their fundamental rights and it discriminated against all people above 45 years of age. This rule not only prohibited those people who wanted to join the legal profession after retirement, but put a blanket ban on all those people who had attained the age of 45 years and were otherwise qualified to be enrolled as advocates,” the petition said.

The petitioners also questioned the power of the Bar Council to introduce such a rule and said neither the Bar Council of India nor the state Bar Council had the power to make a rule to debar persons of age group of 45 years from getting registered as lawyers if they were otherwise qualified.

The court was informed the earlier Bar Council of Tamil Nadu had also introduced upper age limit for getting registration as a lawyer, but the rule was struck down by the Madras High Court. 

Noida, March 26
The Lok Adalat, organised yesterday by the District Judicial Service Authority (DJSA), resolved a total of 1,543 cases. Most of the cases pertained to motor vehicles and the concerned FIRs connected with them.

A fine of Rs 1,36,555 was imposed in these cases of traffic violations. Ashok Kumar Singh, Secretary, DJSA, said the main objective behind organising the Lok Adalat was to resolve the cases and create a respect and faith for law among the people.

The Lok Adalat was convened on the instructions of District and Session Judge, SNH Zaidi, and the  next Lok Adalat would be called on April 29, Mr Singh said.—OC

New Delhi, March 26
A court here has sentenced two persons to life imprisonment for brutally killing a person while robbing him four years ago.

After hearing the arguments of both the prosecution and the defence, Additional Sessions Judge Braja Raja Kedia held Sudhir, alias Sonu (23), and Jamil (24) guilty of killing Mam Chand in the process of robbing him of Rs 200. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 each on them.

According to the prosecution, on June 28, 2003, Jamil, along with his accomplice Sudhir, and a juvenile robbed Mam Chand (35) at knife-point in an autorickshaw while going from Sarai Kale Khan to Raj Ghat. They had caused multiple injuries to the victim with a knife and a razor. Later, he succumbed to the injuries inflicted on him.

New Delhi, March 26
The Bed and Breakfast Scheme launched by the government recently, specifically to tide over the shortage of rooms during the Commonwealth Games 2010, is yet to take off because of confusion over the taxing policy.

The house owners are confused about whether they will be charged commercial or domestic rates.

Ever since the Union Tourism Ministry launched the scheme in November last year, the ministry has received only 120 applications from parties offering their houses to double as tourist lodges.

People were hesitant because the Delhi Government was yet to finalise its taxation policy on the houses giving such a facility, a senior official in the Tourism Ministry claimed.

There were several category of taxes — electricity tax, property tax, water tax — and the parties were not sure whether they would be charged commercial rates or domestic tax rates, the official said.

Delhi also had luxury tax if establishments like hotels were started, which would add to the tax burden of the entrepreneur. There were other factors also which could be keeping people away from the scheme. There was apprehension about accommodating a stranger, he said.

The Indian family value system was such that people were generally wary of keeping a stranger in the house. Also, it was an altogether new concept in India, though Bed and Breakfast Scheme was a common thing in the West, the official said.

The Bed and Breakfast Scheme required a party to get its ownership of the house confirmed first. It was followed by police verification. After that, the tourism authorities inspected the facilities and gave a rating, gold or silver, depending upon the quality of amenities. The licence was granted only after the benchmarking was complete.

The ministry was expecting a tourist growth of 12 to 15 per cent per annum till 2010 and had assessed a total of 30,000 hotel rooms would be required in the National Capital Territory of Delhi alone to accommodate tourists and visitors to the Commonwealth Games 2010.

Various land owning agencies like the DDA, the Haryana and Uttar Pradesh Governments, the Indian Railways and the Airport Authority of India had been approached for allocating more sites for hotels and also for adopting annual rental payment in place of outright auction of plots to promote low-priced accommodation in budget hotels.

These agencies had also been requested to consider higher floor-area-ratio (FAR) for hotels, allowing land use change so that private entrepreneurs owning land were also allowed to build hotels. 

New Delhi, March 26
Delhiites got their first glimpse of the new Dilli Haat at Pitampura yesterday as a maiden cultural programme was held at the amphitheatre there.

The new Dilli Haat, about 70 per cent ready, will be completed by October this year. The amphitheatre of Dilli Haat Pitampura has a capacity of 450 persons. A lot of West Delhiites turned up for the event and enjoyed the new Haat which is described as a destination for all seasons.

Present on the occasion were Mr Sanat Kaul, CMD, Delhi Tourism, Mr Devinder Singh, GM, and other dignitaries.

The cultural programme started with Panchvadyam followed by Shehnai recital by Ashwani Shankar and Party. He is a senior disciple of Pt Ravi Shankar and belongs to Banaras Gharana. Folk dances from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan with Rahmat Khan Langa and Party were the other highlights of the day. This was followed by a dance performance by senior disciples of Padma Shri Shovana Narayan and a qawwali by Nizami Bandhu.

The new Dilli Haat is planned on 7.2 acres. It has 128 crafts shops as compared to 80 at the Dilli Haat at INA Market. A new feature of Dilli Haat Pitampura is a spice market which plans to sell spices from across the country and fill the air with aroma that is unmatched.

The Pitampura Haat has a lot of landscaped area with terrace gardens. There is a fully air-conditioned arts gallery and a big conference room that can accommodate 140-150 persons. A dormitory for visiting craftsmen and a basement car parking are the new features of this Haat. The basement of the Haat can accommodate 250 cars and as many two-wheelers. The Haat is well-equipped with fire-fighting equipment. There are four emergency fire exits also.

The Dilli Haat at Pitampura is also taking care of the taste buds of the residents of West Delhi areas. The variety of dishes available in Indian cuisine is legendary. It boasts of two food courts with 20 shops and an air-conditioned restaurant for fine dining. The Dilli Haat Pitampura is located between the TV Tower and Delhi Metro Line.

Ghaziabad, March 26
In a shocking incident in Shaundit village near Meerut, a woman, a blind follower of a ‘tantarik’, reportedly made a sacrificial offering of her own two children. 

The ‘tantarik’ is reported to have abetted her to first offer her minor daughter and later a young son as a sacrifice to ward off ‘evil spirits’.

Another young boy of the same village was also lined up as a sacrificial offering but he escaped and informed the police.

The police arrested the accused ‘tantarik’ and the mother of the children. This shocking incident allegedly took place in the presence of the whole family.

The local police circle officer said Muslmeen, wife of Babu, a resident of a Muslim majority village Shaundit, felt she was under the influence of evil spirits as a result of which her husband always remained sick. She called a tantarik, Israt, and told him that her two-year-old daughter, Ekra was often seized by evil spirits.

Babu’s eight-year-old son told the police that all the family members were inside the room when the incident took place and its door was opened only for getting some water. When the door was opened on Thursday after 24 hours, both the children were found dead, Babu’s sister told the police.

New Delhi, March 26
The North district police today claimed to have arrested two notorious cheats–Rajesh Bhasin (38), a resident of Faridabad, and Rajiv Gupta, a resident of Greater Noida, and worked out bank frauds to the tune of Rs 9 crore.

Following a tip-off, one cheat was caught from the parking lot of Kailash Hospital, Noida. He had been lured into this trade by his brother-in-law Rajesh Basin.

Rajesh Basin had floated a company to export garments in 1996. His consignment of export got stuck after a while and the payments were withheld in Dubai. He then borrowed money at a high interest rate and to repay the debt, he committed fraud.

In the same year, with connivance of some officials of the SBI, Rajouri Garden, he had allegedly taken export credit limit in the name of a fictitious firm in which he had taken Rs 80 lakh from the bank. The CBI is still investigating the case.

In 1998, in collusion with the then Branch Manager of Corporation Bank, Mundaka, he allegedly opened five current accounts in the name of five fictitious firms and managed to claim duty drawbacks to the tune of more than Rs 7 crore, said a police officer.

New Delhi, March 26
Two persons have been arrested for allegedly demanding Rs 60 million as extortion money from a Delhi-based businessman. They posed as gang members of jailed Uttar Pradesh MLA Mukhtar Ansari, police said today.

The two, Vijay Kumar and Sanjay Singh, were arrested from Bijwasan in South-West Delhi. A loaded pistol, a knife and two fake mobile chips were seized from them, police said.

They had allegedly demanded money from businessman Budha Ram who owns a flour mill at Dwarka in South-West Delhi.

The complainant told police that he had received repeated extortion calls from Kumar asking him to pay the money or his life would be in danger. He claimed to be associated with Mukhtar Ansari and dreaded criminal Manbir Don.

Ansari is currently in jail in connection with the killing of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, while Mahabir Don is an inter-state criminal wanted in several cases of kidnapping, extortion and murder in Delhi and Haryana, police said.

During interrogation, the duo allegedly revealed that they had demanded Rs 10 million each from four businessmen in the Capital, said a police officer. 

New Delhi, March 26
In a statement, Chairman of the Delhi Pradesh Election Campaign Committee and Deputy Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Prof. Vijay Kumar Malhotra has strongly condemned the failure of the Delhi Congress and the Central Government to organise any programme on the occasion of 75th martyrdom day of Sardar Bhagat Singh and alleged that the Congress is neglecting the martyrs. The martyrdom day of Sardar Bhagat Singh fell on March 23.

Prof. Malhotra said that neither the Prime Minister nor Mrs Sonia Gandhi paid any tributes to Bhagat Singh. They did not even go to his memorial.

Sardar Bhagat Singh was a great revolutionary and he started armed revolution against the British rule. The British Government hanged him and as a reaction to it, there was a countrywide strike.

Prof. Malhotra said that the Congress and its leaders had refused to pass a resolution to cancel the capital punishment to Sardar Bhagat Singh and appeal to the British Government on the ground that Sardar Bhagat Singh was a revolutionary who had adopted the path of armed rebellion.

But the same Congress and its leaders are now appealing to cancel the capital punishment of dreaded terrorist Afzal who has been awarded capital punishment by the Supreme Court for attacking Parliament and killing nine security personnel. The Home Ministry and the Delhi Government are sitting on the file relating to the clemency petition of Afzal, Prof. Malhotra said.

The refusal to appeal for cancelling the capital punishment of great revolutionary and martyr Sardar Bhagat Singh and openly trying for clemency to the dreaded terrorist Afzal exposes the double standards and communal face of the Congress, said Prof. Malhotra.

He has strongly criticised disregarding the martyrdom of Sardar Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad, Ram Prasad Bismil, Shafaulla Khan, Vir Savarkar and thousands of martyrs and revolutionaries like them.

He said that the Congress was so engrossed in its devotion to one family that they were now ignoring those who had sacrificed their lives for the Independence of the country.

Prof. Malhotra further said that the people of Delhi did not lag behind in sacrificing for the country. Master Amirchand, Bhai Balmukund, Master Bihari Lal Avadh ji were hanged on the charges of throwing a bomb at Lord Hardings. But the Congress does not recognise their sacrifice as martyrdom.

Noida, March 26
Final touches have been given to polling centres set up in the district. As many as 123 polling centres have been identified as the most sensitive ones in the district, while the number of sensitive polling booths is estimated at 359.

Arrangements have been finalised so that special attention could be given to these sensitive centres and booths.

As per the Central Election Commission’s orders, a collector has been posted in the district, while another collector and a Deputy Collector are yet to be made available. The district administration has, however, demanded an ADM and two Additional Deputy Collectors, it is learnt. A majority of sensitive polling centres and polling booths are located in Dadri constituency. Sensitive centres in Javer are 19, and the most sensitive centres are 24, while the number of sensitive booths is 57.

In Secunderabad, sensitive booths are 15, while the most sensitive centres are 23. Sensitive booths are 23, while the number of highly sensitive booths is 44.

The sensitive centres in Dadri are 57, while the highly sensitive centres are 76. Besides, 103 booths here have been identified as sensitive, while the highly sensitive booths are 258.

The total number of polling centres is 216, while the number of sensitive booths stands at 521. Additional police and paramilitary force will be deployed on all these sensitive centres and booths, where officers will also maintain a strict vigil.

New Delhi, March 26
Hundreds of Manipuri students held a demonstration here today demanding the release of 400 villagers, allegedly abducted by the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) militants in their state early this month.

Students of Manipuri’s Kuki tribe, who gathered near the Delhi Police headquarters, ITO, said the villagers in Chandel district were forcibly taken across the border to Myanmar by UNLF rebels.

The students also demanded the release of 122 other students who were arrested on Friday on charges of rioting and damaging public property after clashes with police.

The angry crowd condemned the police brutality against their activities, especially women protesters who, they claimed, were molested and baton-charged.

However, DCP, New Delhi, Anan Mohan denied the claim of baton-charge.—OC

Gurgaon, March 26
Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) today auctioned its 10 sites fetching an amount of Rs 71.20 crore against the reserve price of Rs 41.34 crore.

The HUDA administrator, Gurgaon zone, Mr S P Gupta informed that one hotel site, measuring around 3,574 square metre in Sector 14, was sold at Rs 61 crore against the reserve price of Rs 36 crore, registering a 170 per cent increase. This site was lying un-used for a long time and a cinema theatre was using it illegally as parking place.

Five departmental store sites at Sector 9-A, measuring around 75 square metre, were sold at Rs 122, 98, 101.75, 105.25 and 104.25 lakh, informed the administrator.

Three single-storey booths without basement, measuring around 22 square metre in Sector 21, were auctioned at Rs 46, 47, and 45.50 lakh.

Mr Gupta added that one primary school site at Sector 9-A measuring around 4,080 square metre was sold at Rs 3.50 crore against the reserve price of Rs 2.97 crore.

New Delhi, March 26
Dedicated to the cause of cancer, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre is organising RGCON’07, a two-day annual international conference on “Cervical Cancer, Current Management and Future Direction”.

A focused conference on carcinoma cervix, i.e. cervical cancer affecting women, with high scientific content, RGCON ’07 will be attended by renowned national and international speakers from Surgical Oncology, Radiation Oncology, Medical Oncology, Pathology and Medical Physics. Scientific sessions includes orations, plenary sessions, symposia and debates to encourage interaction among the participating delegates.

Addressing the press, Dr A. K. Anand, organising secretary, RGCON ’07, and Senior Consultant, Department of Radiation Oncology, RGCI, said, “During these two days we will deliberate on current standard of care in the management of cervix, including such important aspects as prevention and early detection.