New Delhi, April 5
As expected, the sealing of commercial establishments in the National Capital Territory of Delhi remained the prime issue in the MCD poll today.

Mr Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary-General of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which is spearheading the anti-sealing movement in the Capital, said, “Undoubtedly, sealing has proved to be the main and major issue for the MCD poll today and will surely be a deciding factor.”

Though other issues like inflation, mal-administration in the MCD, security, sanitation etc were also in the picture, yet the sealing of business establishments remained the core issue in the minds of not only the traders but even the public in general as well, said Mr Khandelwal. 

New Delhi, April 5
The Pearl Academy of Fashion (PAF) held its 14th annual convocation ceremony. The Chief Minister of Delhi, Ms Sheila Dikshit, was the chief guest. Prof Neil Gorman, Vice-Chancellor, Nottingham Trent University, conferred degrees and professional diplomas to 82 graduating students of BA Hons in Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising and Production.

Addressing the graduating batches, Ms Dikshit said the graduating students had opportunities aplenty in India. “We want to develop Delhi as the fashion capital. And for this, both the academy and its graduates have a very important role to play. Fashion design is one such sector where academics and business
overlap. The graduates
need to engage the knowledge acquired from this prestigious institute with what they are set to achieve in the realm of business, with integrity and conviction. I wish all the students a successful future,”
she said.

Prof Neil Gorman, Vice-Chancellor, Nottingham Trent University, added, “The institute has given birth to wonders of fashion industry who are taking India global. And it is an honour to be a part of this convocation ceremony.”

New Delhi, April 5
Former IAS officer Mr Tejendra Khanna was today appointed as Lieutenant Governor of the national Capital replacing Mr B L Joshi who has been moved as governor of Meghalaya.

A Rashtrapati Bhavan communication said Mr Khanna had been appointed as the new Lt Governor with effect from the date he assumed charge of the office.

Mr Khanna, who is likely to be sworn in tomorrow, has earlier also served in the same post.

Mr Khanna, a 1961 batch IAS officer, retired as commerce secretary and served as Lieutenant Governor of Delhi from January four, 1997 to April 14, 1998. He also headed a committee that went into the violation of building laws in the Capital. Mr Khanna was a part of the WTO negotiations team during the United Front government.

The 73-year-old Mr Joshi, who was appointed as Lt Governor on June nine, 2004, has been appointed as governor of Meghalaya with effect from the date he assumes the post.

The Governor of Nagaland, Mr K Sankaranarayanan, has been asked to assume the additional charge of Arunachal Pradesh in addition to his own duties during the absence on leave of S K Singh, the communication said.

New Delhi, April 5
The Central Information Commission (CIC) has issued a showcause notice to the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the National Commission for the Scheduled Castes (NCSC) for not responding to an RTI application on the issue of OBC certificates.

The commission, in its recent order, also directed the NCSC to attend to the request of Gowri Shanker Giri by April 13, who had sought information as to why the office of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate in Najafgarh here had not issued Other Backward Classes (OBC) certificates.

“The commission decides to issue a showcause notice to the PIO, the National Commission for the Scheduled Castes (NCSC) as to why a penalty should not be imposed,” Information Commissioner O. P. Kejariwal said.

Giri had filed an application with the PIO, NCBC, on July 25 last year for the non-issuance of OBC certificates by the Najafgarh SDM’s office.

In response to his application, the NCBC said it had no power to deal with the grievances of the OBCs. “The matter relating to the issue of the OBC certificate was entrusted with the NCSC as per the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993,” it said.

The NCBC also forwarded Giri’s application to the NCSC in July last year for necessary action.

The information seeker had filed an appeal with the CIC after he could not get a response with the NCSC to his application filed on October 13 last year.

New Delhi, April 5
Delhi Tourism and Cyber Learning launched Microsoft Office Specialist and Internet and computing core certification course (IC3) yesterday at the IITTM Delhi Chapter here. Dr Sanat Kaul, CMD, Delhi Tourism, did the honours in the presence of other dignitaries, faculty members and Microsoft officials.

IT is not a commodity but a true enabler for any sector. It is considered fundamental to the growth of any industry today. As the popularity of the Internet medium continues to surge, Delhi Tourism brings out this initiative offering a gateway to the learners for other certification programmes and gives the foundation for the career one chooses.

An MoU has been signed between Delhi Tourism and Cyber Learning wherein cyber learning provides the software, technical support and faculty and Delhi Tourism provides logistics, promotion and marketing for these well-designed courses at IITTM.

New Delhi, April 5
The National Consumer Commission has asked the state-owned Central Public Works Department (CPWD) to pay Rs 55,000 to a Health Ministry official for poor upkeep of his flat, leading to a theft in his premises.

Taking note of delay of over six months in fixing the iron grills and doors by CPWD officials in the house of K. K. Miglani, which led to a theft in September 2002, the commission, comprising president M. B. Shah and member Rajyalakshmi Rao, held it guilty of deficiency in service.

An ordinary citizen or a common man is hardly equipped to match the might of the state. Hence, an award of exemplary damage can serve a useful purpose in vindicating the strength of law, the commission said in a recent order, citing a Supreme Court judgement.

It was the duty of the officers of cpwd to maintain the house and to have routine check at the premises before handing it over to Mer. Miglani, it observed.

The commission, while awarding the compensation, further noted that apart from the loss due to the theft, the complainant had to suffer damage to the washing machine as well after a portion of the ceiling fell in 2003.

Applying an apex court verdict, it left it open for the CPWD to recover the penalty from salaries of the erring officers to prevent delay in discharging their duty in the future.

Mr Miglani was given possession of a flat in April 2002 by the CPWD in Lodhi Colony here. At the time of taking possession, both the wooden doors of the flat had developed cracks and so he deposited Rs 1140 with the CPWDF for providing the iron grill doors. The CPWD, however, did not respond to his pleas and took more than six months to carry out the necessary repairs.

New Delhi, April 5
Mr Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and Mr Pranab Mukherjee, Minister for External Affairs, Government of India, in presence of Ms Sheila Dikshit, Delhi Chief Minister, unveiled the naming plaque of crossroad no 1 connecting Shanti Path to Niti Marg,

Chanakyapuri, here as Ahmad Shah Massoud Marg in honour of the great leader of Afghanistan at a function organised by the New Delhi Municipal Council. During the past few years, the NDMC has dedicated a number of roads in this diplomatic area to commemorate the heroes of the modern world who fashioned the present shape of our contemporary world.

New Delhi, April 5
The empowered committee of the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) is looking for ways to increase the use of CNG fuel to reduce pollution levels in towns of the National Capital Region and is also opening a large number of CNG pump stations.

At its first meeting here yesterday, the committee felt inter-state buses, particularly those running from NCR towns to Delhi and also from state capitals to Delhi, should be progressively converted to CNG or alternatively constituent states should switch over to Euro III norm for diesel-driven buses in a time-bound manner.

NCRPB member secretary H. S. Anand called for enhancement of CNG buses in the NCR.

It discussed issues relating to unrestricted movement of buses, taxis and autorickshaws within the National Capital Region as well as improving connectivity both by extension of Metro to satellite towns around Delhi as well as better framework of roads in preparation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

The committee, chaired by Union Urban Development Secretary M. Ramachandran, was attended by the Chief Secretary of Haryana, the Additional Chief Secretary of Rajasthan besides senior officials from Uttar Pradesh and Delhi Governments and various central government departments.

The empowered committee also decided to set up a committee of transport secretaries under the aegis of the NCRPB to work out a common framework for seamless traffic and develop a draft for a common multilateral agreement.

Mr Ramachandran highlighted the problems relating to movement from Delhi to NCR towns like Gurgaon, Faridabad, Noida, Greater Noida and back and emphasised the need to resolve these issues bilaterally in the short term as well as for creation of a hassle-free, multi-mode transport system in the National Capital Region in the medium term.

The empowered committee deliberated on the need for having a seamless travel facility within the National Capital Region through bilateral agreements under the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act in the short term and subsequently a multi-lateral agreement among the constituents of the NCR.

The committee deliberated on the need to expedite the upgradation of the existing national highways to six or eight-lane access controlled highways on expressways standards for promoting better connectivity in the wake of the Commonwealth Games. It requested the Ministry of Road Transport and the National Highway Authority of India to expedite conversion well before the Games.

The empowered committee was set up by the NCR Planning Board to take decisions on critical activities essential for making the National Capital Region an area of global excellence. 

Gurgaon, April 5
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda lamented about the poor infrastructure in Gurgaon, saying that his government was focussed on improving on this front.

He said last year the government had taken a decision to spend a sum of Rs 760 crore in three years on infrastructure development.

Also, a scheme had been approved to augment the water supply in Gurgaon.

He said Gurgaon occupied pride of place in Haryana and was a strong referring point for the state abroad as well.

He reiterated his government’s resolve to give greater momentum to growth and development in Gurgaon.—TNS

Gurgaon, April 5
Binola, a small village of 98 households in Gurgaon district, has achieved the distinction of being the first ‘CFL village’ of Haryana by replacing all energy consuming incandescent (yellow) bulbs with energy efficient compact florescent lamps (CFL).

Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Gupta informed that the total load of the two electricity distribution transformers at peak time in the village had reduced from 120 ampere to 75 ampere and 98 ampere to 42 ampere, after replacing all incandescent bulbs with 700 CFLs. The total load of the village had reduced by about 50 per cent, he claimed.

“The present two transformers of 100 KVA capacity each are now sufficient to take total load of the village and there is no over-loading on the system,” he said.

There were 30 tube wells in the village for which DHBVN has proposed a scheme that in case a tube well owner replaces his old motor and pump with energy efficient BEE-labelled rated motor and pump, his connection will be changed to high tension system by providing independent transformer at Nigam’s cost.

The department has also relocated all the electricity meters in the village from inside the houses to outside their premises.

DHBVN plans to replace at least average three conventional bulbs per consumer with CFLs by December 2007. The Nigam has arranged sale of CFLs at half prices at its offices and Consumer Care Centres.

The DC informed that as per a study, replacement of one conventional bulb by CFL by each of the 18 lakh consumers of DHBVN would translate into saving of 300 MW power. Thus, the replacement of targeted three conventional bulbs with CFLs, the saving works out to be 900 MW. Construction of a thermal power plant of this much capacity costs Rs 4,000 crore. 

New Delhi, April 5
A Delhi court sentenced a man to two years rigorous imprisonment for injuring two persons with gunshots four years ago.

Convict Jai Bhagwan, a resident of Bawana here, had fired shots at Pawan Kumar and Roshan Lal on September 18, 2003 by a country-made weapon as he was enraged over the acquittal of Pawan in a case of rape committed with his sister-in-law. The Additional Sessions Judge awarded two years rigorous imprisonment to Jai Bhagwan with a fine of Rs 2000 after holding him guilty under Section 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) of the IPC.—OC

Noida, April 5
Two minor boys have been missing since Tuesday from Nithari.

Nanu, 14, and Prakash, 9, had reportedly gone together in the afternoon on Tuesday. They have not been seen since then.

The families of the two boys searched for them but when the family members failed to trace them, they informed the police.

The missing report of the boys has created a commotion in the police department, already stretched in the cases of Nithari children gone missing and killed later.

A search operation has been launched to trace the boys.

Police circle officer (city) said preliminary investigations revealed that both the boys had gone to their uncle’s shop and asked for Rs 200. When they failed to get the money, they walked away on their own accord, the police officer said.