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3 low-floor buses break down
Pollution less this Diwali
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DDA sports complex needs care
Better sanitation for best India
‘Om Shanti Om’ beats
‘Saawariya’ at box office
BIMTECH goes ‘Chak De’
DU tie-up with IGNOU
in distance education
Prahalad: Most influential thinker
Jagjivan Ram foundation to be set up
Order on nursery admissions on Children’s Day
Four chain snatchers held
Man promised job, cheated
Man killed in car accident
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3 low-floor buses break down
New Delhi, November 10 The Chief Minister had flagged off the widely publicised 12 low-floor buses on the roads of Delhi some days ago. But three low-floor buses broke down on November 7 just after starting from Shivaji Stadium. The employees of the manufacturing
company could not repair these buses even after working for the whole day. The employees said that the roads on which these buses were being run were not good enough. Delhi unit president of the BJP, Harsh Vardhan said that the BJP had cautioned the Delhi government that firstly it should make the roads good for the low-floor buses and only after that these buses should be operated. In order to get popularity, Vardhan said, the Chief Minister started these buses in a haste without making any ground survey. The cost of one bus is Rs 41 lakh. The Delhi government has already placed orders to purchase about 1,500 such buses. There are about 3,700 buses in the fleet of the DTC. Out of these, about 2,000 buses always remain defective due to bad road conditions. Only 1,700 buses of the DTC are plied on roads. Vardhan said the DTC officers know it very well, but due to insistence of the Chief Minister, they started costly low-floor buses. A senior officer of the DTC denied these allegations outrightly saying that all the 10 buses plied smoothly. There were neither any complaint of bad road conditions nor technical snag in the buses. The allegation of parties was baseless, the officer added. |
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Pollution less this Diwali
New Delhi, November 10 The DPCC monitored the air and noise pollution levels at 40 locations during pre-Diwali and Diwali. This was done to assess the impact of Diwali celebrations. The monitoring of the pollution levels was conducted between 6 pm and 10 pm. The report said that Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) declined at 11 out of 40 locations and at two locations, it was level with the last year. The minimum value was observed at Inderpuri and maximum value at R. K. Puram. The Suspended Particulate Matter showed a decline at 16 locations compared to previous year. The report said that Carbon Monoxide (CO) values are within the limit at all the locations except at Lawrence Road. The CO declined at 34 locations out of 40 locations monitored and shows a remarkable impact of anti-crackers campaign of the government, despite a tremendous increase in the number of vehicles since last year. The Oxides of Nitrogen (Nox) declined at 20 locations. According to the report, the Sulphur Dioxide was found within the limits. Only at Ashok Vihar and Kondly it was higher than last year. There was decline of Sulphur Dioxide and Carbon Monoxide in the air due to the multi-pronged campaign launched by the state government. Besides government, five professional theater groups staged street plays at 50 locations, including residential, market and public places. The noise pollution also reduces at six places, the report stated. |
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Fires destroy property, spare lives
New Delhi, November 10 According to the fire department, Diwali in Delhi caused less loss this year. Most of the residents woke up safe and sound. “The total number of complaints was much lesser than the last year,” said R.C.Sharma, chief fire officer. “No injuries have been reported. Forty-five out of the total 147 fire incidents were due to the crackers and the rest were regular complaints,” said the chief fire officer. However, a minor fire took place in the Sadar Bazar area in two shops. “The fire was minor and we took control of the situation within half an hour. Twelve fire tenders were sent to the market to douse the fire, ” added Sharma. |
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DDA sports complex needs care
New Delhi, November 10 The DDA was not even “honouring” the commitment given to the Delhi High Court last year to put in place the basic minimum facilities in the Hari Nager Sports Complex (HNSC), over 3,000 strong members and sportspersons registered with it in their representation to various authorities of the Centre and Delhi government have alleged. In a bunch of representations sent to urban development minister Ajay Maken, Lt-Governor of Delhi, chairman of DDA and its director, Sports, the members claimed that the management of HNSC had not even complied with the undertaking given to the High Court, in which they had sought 10 months to improve the facilities. The members alleged that the HNSC had been run by the authority under an honorary secretary Y K Bakshi for the past six years, whereas as per the rules, the post is temporary only carrying the tenure of six months. The undertaking was given by the DDA following a suit by three members—Dr Gian Singh, Mohan Agrawal and Jitender Sachdeva– which was eventually withdrawn as a compromise after the authority’s commitment. Apart from seeking a direction for improving the facilities, the members had said that the DDA should not be allowed to carry a “substandard” work under the supervision of the present management of the complex as instead of improving the existing infrastructure, it would rather deteriorate it. A bunch of complaints sent by the members to the authorities concerned stated that sports facilities like badminton courts, squash courts, swimming pool, table tennis, basket ball courts, gym and various other games required immediate
attention. |
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Better sanitation for best India
New Delhi, November 10 “Around 2.6 billion people worldwide don’t have access to toilets, which means 40 per cent of the global population are facing acute sanitation problems. Half of the Indians, let’s say over 500 million people, have no access to toilets and this makes the situation worse,” said Jon Lane, head of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council of Geneva, Switzerland. “If India can improve its sanitation facilities, then it will be a global benefit. See, one out of every five people worldwide with no access to basic sanitation facility is an Indian,” Lane told IANS, urging “people and governments to introspect”. Lane, whose organisation won this year’s Sulabh Global Sanitation Award, said people living in rural areas and those living in urban slums relieved themselves in the open. “Open defection is degradable, it’s a shame for people, government and overall any civil society. It’s not that people want to defecate in open but they don’t have any alternative,” said the expert who was here to participate in the World Toilet Summit. If the government spends $1 on sanitation it actually gains $9, he said, quoting World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics. “Expenditure on sanitation will cut down the disease treatment costs and add to the country’s economy by helping people to work efficiently,” he explained. Former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam said an improved toilet system would help India save at least Rs.5 billion every year. “Due to poor sanitation, people in India face many health hazards, and in monetary terms the cost to the country for treatment of such ailments is Rs.2 billion and the loss of working days due to it is worth Rs.3 billion,” Kalam said during the inauguration of the summit last week. “This Rs.5 billion can be utilised for the benefit of economically weaker sections of society. “Ministries like rural development, water, poverty alleviation and social justice should join hands to provide adequate sanitation, specially the toilet system, to all Indians,” Kalam said. Sanitation experts from 44 countries were here last week to discuss global sanitation standards and prepare an international roadmap to “provide toilets to all” by 2025. Though the roadmap is yet to take final shape, experts said all participating countries had declared 2008 as World Sanitation Year, and both government organisations and NGOs would spread awareness among people. “From next year onwards we are going to talk to policymakers on how to effectively mobilize people in this direction. If India needs to achieve the status of a developed nation, providing toilet facility to 100 percent population is a must,” said Bindeshwar Pathak, chief of Sulabh Internationals, a non-profit body working to improve sanitation in India. “We need to take the community along with us for achieving this goal. Effective awareness campaigns through street plays, radio, TV and print media will be used in the near future by both India and global donor organisations for this purpose,” he said. Jack Sim, president of the World Toilet Organisation, Singapore, said: “The World Toilet Summit in New Delhi was organised to sensitise the civil society and the government of India to improve their sanitation
standard.” — IANS |
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Thief targets govt staff, held
New Delhi, November 10 Specific information was developed about Subhash, who was believed to be involved in the theft cases that were taking place in the corners of the city inhabited by the government servants. The employed couple would generally be out of the house during the daytime and Subhash’s work would start then. There had been many cases where Subhash’s accomplices were arrested with motorcycles registered in Subhash’s name. On November 4, secret input was received about Subhash and police team was dispatched to Press Enclave Road. Ultimately, he was arrested while he was trying to clinch a deal with someone to sell charas. According to the police, the thief has engaged himself in the drug business as well. One Indica car, one motorcycle, one kilogram charas, seven laptops, one kilogram of gold and diamond jewellery, half kilogram of silver, 10 stolen mobile phones and five costly wrist-watches have been recovered from Subhash. He has been taken in police custody and efforts are being made to recover the stolen articles from various parts of the country. One receiver of the stolen jewellery has also been arrested at the instance of the criminal. The notorious thief used to operate in areas like Malviya Nagar Khirki area, Defence Colony, Gautam Nagar, New Friends Colony, Jamia area, Kalkaji Gobindpuri area, Lodhi Colony and Mehrauli. The time of all the thefts committed by Subhash was between 10 am and 5 pm when the employed couple would not be at home. The daily earnings of the thief were around Rs 10,000. |
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‘Om Shanti Om’ beats
‘Saawariya’ at box office
New Delhi, November 10 While King Khan’s film registered 90 percent occupancy across the country on its Diwali release, Bhansali’s love story managed 60 percent. “Om Shanti Om” is director Farah Khan’s tribute to the colourful and vibrant cinemas of the0 70s and it has Shah Rukh is a new avatar, going shirtless and displaying his six-pack abs, while Bhansali’s film is a mystical love story set in Shimla and introduces new faces. According to Vishal Kapur, COO of Fun Cinemas, the Shah Rukh film has generated a lot of repeat audience interest in comparison to “Saawariya”. “Among our 15 cineplexes across the country, the bigger ones did a business of at least Rs.500,000 and smaller ones Rs.150,000 on Friday. ‘Saawariya’ churned out Rs.350,000 at the big centres, while at the smaller ones it could only manage to collect Rs.78,000,” Kapur told IANS. Kapur feels that “Om Shanti Om” could prove an even bigger Shah Rukh hit than his last “Chak De! India”. “It could do better than ‘Chak De!’ which picked up after the positive reviews. However, ‘Om Shanti Om’ had a great opening. I am a little doubtful about ‘Saawariya’,” said Kapur. The audience response can be gauged from Anirban Basu, a movie buff who saw both the films. “Om Shanti Om’ is much more entertaining than ‘Saawariya’. SRK’s film has a perfect blend of comedy and drama while Bhansali’s film is stale and boring. It is extremely slow. Apart from the lavish sets there is nothing in the film to hold the audiences’ interest.” The difference of how well both the films would do in the coming days is also evident from the advance bookings. “For Saturday, 50 percent of advance booking has been done for ‘Om Shanti Om’ while for ‘Saawariya’ it is just a little over 20 percent,” said Ashok Bisht, assistant manager of JAM multiplex, Noida. With both the films in tough competition, the weekend will prove boom time for the multiplexes across the country. “With two big films releasing the same day, this weekend will prove to be a big money spinner for all multiplexes.
— IANS |
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BIMTECH goes ‘Chak De’
New Delhi, November 10 Students of BIMTECH are convinced that this event is a very successful management case study, which has created ripples in the corporate world, as the theme is something which people can relate to. The multi-cultural diversity and its attendant problems, the work place politics and finally the triumph of ethics and commitment of the team over all odds, make it look like a fairy tale come true. Jaideep Sahni, the scriptwriter of the movie ‘Chak De’ had also sent his congratulatory message to the BIMTECH students on taking such an initiative. The audio clip was played as a part of the function. The coach of the woman’s hockey team, M K Kaushik, whose book ‘Golden Boot’ had inspired Jaideep Sahni to write the script, too had sent across a video clip showing his views on the importance of leadership and teamwork in sports and real life. Dr H Chaturvedi, director, BIMTECH speaking at the event said, “To make learning more effective, we should always evolve innovative ways in teaching. Chak De is a very stimulating film, and BIMTECH has used it efficiently to convey the principles of management studies. BIMTECH has taken special permission from the producer—Yash Raj Films—to use the clippings of the film at the event. |
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DU tie-up with IGNOU
in distance education
New Delhi, November 10 “We are likely to enter into collaboration with Delhi University (DU) under which we will provide technical support to them to offer quality education through the distance mode,” the IGNOU pro-vice-chancellor, Prof Omprakash Mishra said recently. IGNOU, one of the largest open varsities in the world, has also started involving several other universities from across the country to strengthen their distance education system. This collaboration will be a part of IGNOU’s convergence scheme, which envisages bridging gap between the conventional mode of education and the distant mode. “In distant mode, we also have face-to-face classes. Many universities have introduced distance education for various courses. This effort will further strengthen the distance mode of education,” Mishra said. IGNOU had recently conducted a meeting of 20 leading universities. |
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Prahalad: Most influential thinker
New Delhi, November 10 Prahalad, who is the first Indian-origin thinker to claim the title, was ranked number three in last year’s Thinkers 50 list brought out by Suntop Media. A professor at the university of Michigans’ Stephen M Ross School of Business, Prahalad specialises in corporate strategy research and is a globally known figure consulted by the top management of many of the world’s foremost companies. Best known for his work with Gary Hamel (ranked 5th) on resource-based strategy, which gave rise to the term core competence, more recently, Prahalad has turned his attention to the plight of the world’s poor, said Stuart Crainer of Suntop Media. ‘In the bottom of the pyramid’, his 2004 book, he argues that capitalism can be the engine to eradicate poverty, Crainer said in a statement posted on the website thinkers50.Com. If we stop thinking of the poor as victims or as a burden, and start recognising them as resilient and creative entrepreneurs, a whole new world of opportunity will open up, Prahalad explains in his book. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has been ranked second and former US Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan third.
— IANS |
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Jagjivan Ram foundation to be set up
New Delhi, November 10 A meeting of the union cabinet approved a proposal mooted by the ministry of social justice and empowerment headed by Meira Kumar, daughter of the late leader. The cabinet gave its in principle approval for setting up the foundation named ‘Babu Jagjivan Ram National Foundation’ as a society under the ministry, finance minister P. Chidambaram told reporters here. The foundation is proposed to be set up with a one-time corpus fund of Rs 50 crore and an additional Rs 4 crore for starting its activities, he said. The foundation would facilitate implementation o various schemes for the social, educational and economic empowerment of the disadvantaged sections of the society, he
said. — PTI |
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Order on nursery admissions on Children’s Day
New Delhi, November 10 A division bench headed by Chief Justice M.K. Sarma adjourned the matter for
hearing. — TNS |
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Four chain snatchers held
Noida, November 10 According to Noida SSP, Sector-20, police were checking vehicles at Sector-19 crossing when four young men on two red and black Pulser bikes were noticed. They were trying to escape, but the cops were able to nab them all. They were identified as Sonu, Sanjiv, Mohan and Kaku, all chain snatchers responsible for 40 incidents of loot during the past one year. On their disclosure, the police also arrested one Sanjeev, a jeweller of Khora Colony. All the criminals were residents of Khora Colony, the police said. These bandits would normally target women going on rickshaws in Sector-32 or Noida stadium. If criminals on one bike committed the chain snatching, those on the second bike would provide them the cover. On learning that some chain snatchers had been arrested, a woman reached the police station and beat up the arrested chain snatchers with her sandles. These very robbers had looted her at a gunpoint in Khora Colony last year. |
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Man promised job, cheated
Ghaziabad, November 10 Tricksters had led four persons up the garden path with a promise that they would be sent to Portugal. A Murad Nagar resident has, in a letter, requested the Chief of Special Task Force to take action against some agents who had defrauded him of Rs 40 lakh. Incidentally a sub-inspector of Delhi Police is among the accused who was said to be involved in this racket of sending people abroad. |
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Man killed in car accident
Noida, November 10 The police have rushed the injured to a hospital in a serious condition. The driver of the truck trailor has been arrested. Vijay Chander Mathur, 62, a resident of A-16 Dronacharya Apartments, Mayur Vihar Phase-I, New Delhi, had gone to meet some relatives in Faridabad along with his wife Kapila Mathur, 58 and daughter Divya Mathur, 22. When the Mathurs were returning from Faridabad, their Maruti car No. DL-6C-7847, after passing the Okhla barrage, hit a truck trailer No. HR-A-2506 parked on roadside near Amarpali crossing. |
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