New Delhi, December 28
The year 2007 has been a remarkable and hectic year for the BSES discoms. The BRPL and the BYPL augmented their infrastructure, deployed the state-of-the-art technologies and cracked down on power theft like never before.

It was notable that the other stakeholders acknowledged the improvements brought about by the BSES discoms for the first time.

According to sources, the BSES discoms, the BRPL and the BYPL invested over Rs 400 crore, Rs 242 crore and Rs 167 crore respectively, in 2007 to augment and strengthen their distribution structures. The BSES discoms have invested over Rs 3,500 crore since 2002.

The electricity ombudsman’s report, assessing the performance of power distribution companies in the Capital over a period of six months (from February 1 to July 31, 2007) has praised the BYPL stating, “The BYPL has improved considerably. Consumer grievances have reduced in number and gravity.”

The report further reads, “There is also improvement in the working of the CGRF-BYPL….” Loadshedding emerged as the major concern among consumers across the discoms.

The BSES has employed the National School of Drama actors to stage nukkad nataks (street plays) in high power theft areas to educate and sensitise people about the menace of power theft. It is for the first time that a discom is educating customers about the adverse effects of power theft by staging nukkad nataks. The actors also solicit the support of customers for the BSES’ crusade against power theft. Over 120 street plays have been held in various high power theft areas.

The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel have been accompanying the BSES enforcement teams during raids to protect them against any bodily harm. While the BYPL became the first discom to get the CISF service in June 2006, the BRPL got its services in May 2007.

The BRPL launched a scheme under which, informers are rewarded with energy efficient CFLs for providing successful power theft leads. The idea behind the reward scheme is to acknowledge the contribution of honest consumers to fight the menace of power theft.

An amnesty scheme was launched for customers, who have their meters tampered. The BSES amnesty scheme from October 15 to November 15, 2007 saw over 2,100 people availing the one-time offer.

The BSES energy conservation scheme – ‘Buy One CFL, get One Free’ launched on October 24, 2006 in tandem with the Indo-Asian Fusegear Ltd reached its pinnacle in 2007. The year long scheme, with two three extensions on popular demand, saw over 4 lakh CFLs being sold – reducing the maximum power demand by a whopping 25 MW and Co2 emissions by a whopping 1.44 lakh tonne per year.

The Programmable Street Light Controller (PSLC) project, to automate streetlights in licensed area was launched as a pilot project, earlier this year. The project will be implemented in other areas, after assessing its impact. Under the first phase, over 7,500 streetlights in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj and Hauz Khas have been automated, which will save around 2.5 million units of electricity every year.

On popular demand by RWAs, the BSES re-launched its training program for the RWA nominated electricians. The training session seeks to provide a holistic training to neighbourhood electricians on internal house wiring, prevention of short circuits and electrical fires, importance of installing Earth Leakage Circuit Breakers (ELCB’s), unique faulty wiring detection feature of electronic meters and sharing the best industry practices. Over 1,000 RWA nominated electricians have been trained so far.

The BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL) launched a project called ‘Parivartan’, costing over Rs 8 crore. It aimed at reducing AT & C losses in high power theft areas in South Delhi including, Madanpur Khadar, Begumpur, Munirka Village, Gautam Nagar and Madandir. After the implementation of the first phase, the BRPL will see a cumulative increase of 1.85 million units of billed energy.

Officials claimed that over 120 colonies electrified in 2007 in the BSES areas through LVDS – getting on board over 1 lakh customers. LVDS, which uses fully insulated Aerial Bunched Cables (LTAB), besides providing quality and stable power to residents, makes it extremely difficult to steal power by hooking from the BSES LV Mains. Reduction in local faults, improved voltage at the consumers end and low maintenance are some of the other advantages that will accrue with the implementation of LVDS.

The BSES also completed the installation of DT Meters. DT meter is used for the purpose of energy accounting, monitoring supply quality and reliability. From this, the BSES can assess the level of energy supplied and billed and, thus, find the quantum of power theft in the area. Thereby, helping in controlling power theft. DT meters keep track of the total energy being received at the transformer and any anomaly (by way of power theft) is immediately captured. Since a transformer supplies power to a limited number of houses, it narrows down the BSES’ search to identify the source of the power theft. 

New Delhi, December 28
India needs to bid farewell to politics of caste and religion, and a casteless society can only bring economic prosperity to the country, historians cutting across ideological lines said here today.

Over 1,000 historians are in the national Capital participating in the three-day Indian History Congress that ends on Sunday.

“Let us focus on resources and not on caste and religion. Casteless society is the need of the hour and every single political party must realise it,” eminent historian R.S. Sharma said.

“We have to end the shackles of casteism for the betterment of masses. If these bad habits were created by us (human beings), then we must stop it,” Sharma, who has written 115 books, told IANS.

Suvira Jaiswal, a renowned historian and former professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), said caste continues to take its toll on legal, political and economic aspects of human lives in the country.

“Although annihilation of caste discrimination has been one of the main priorities of national agenda since independence, it cannot be opposed that caste continues to impact us in a major way not only in personal relations but also in various aspects of public life,” Jaiswal said.

D.N. Roy, a professor of History at the Bhagalpur University, Bihar, said several political parties both in the national and regional level are giving impetus to casteism.

“Let us wipe out the stigma of casteism and start life afresh, where there is no place for discrimination. Political will and public co-operation can give birth to History of casteless society in the country,” Roy told IANS.

Baba Mishra from Orissa said instead of casteism, let us focus on development. “There are only two categories of people — the haves and havenots. Everyone, including our government and politicians, must strive to bridge the gap. Why widen it in the name of caste and religion,” Mishra said.

Delhi University got the opportunity to host the Congress after 46 years. Last year, it was held at Calicut. — IANS

Bulandshahr, December 28
A student in Secunderabad has been killed suspectedly as a sacrificial offering. The body of class IX student, missing for the past two months, was found in the field on Kakode-Bulandshahr road.

The parents of the boy, Deepak, have lodged a report against a friend of the boy in Kakode police station. Some people after seeing the condition of the body, felt that Deepak had been killed to be made a sacrificial offering to some deities.

The family said the killers had drained out blood from Deepak’s body that is why the body had turned yellow. His right ear had been chopped off and a red thread was tied to his feet.

Deepak, son of Rajkumar, resident of Nethala Hasanpur village in Bulandshahr was a class IXth student of Government Inter-College, Bulandshahr. He had been missing from his home for the past two months.

The angry villagers created an uproar when his body was recovered. The police had to hurriedly send his body for postmortem to silence the protesting villagers. Deepak’s paternal uncle, Hari Om Sharma had lodged a report with police naming Deepak’s friend Amit, s/o Shankar Singh.

New Delhi, December 28
Delhi urban minister Raj Kumar Chauhan assured the Delhi Assembly House today on the last day of the winter session that the construction work of proposed Signature Bridge in Wazirabad would start in April 2008.

When the government finalised its plan to construct the bridge, its cost was estimated as Rs 459 crore. Now it has escalated up to Rs 887.32 crore due to price rise of construction material. Foundation stone of the bridge has already been laid by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. Due to some technical problem, its construction could not be started. Now again the government has started tendering process and within a few months, it would be completed and the work would start.

Replying to another question, he said that the Delhi government had asked the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in 1999 to submit plan of unauthorised colonies but the civic body had failed to do this.

Now the government asked the resident welfare associations of these colonies to submit details including map, total number of houses, etc. of their localities so that the government could think of their approval. Earlier, the union urban ministry had decided to authorise the colonies that came up to 1993. Now it has been decide to approve the colonies that came up to the year 2002.

Delhi health minister Yoganand Shastri said that the government had given financial help to 5183 women for various purposes. Any women can apply for the financial help. The application form should be signed by the councillor or the area MLA.

The government has constituted State Health Mission to look after the health problems of the citizens. To take special care of jhuggi dwellers, doctors were asked to move in various jhuggis to treat the patients.

Ramesh Lamba, MLA, said that due to pathetic attitude of the Haryana government officials a few months back, amonia-mixed water was supplied to Delhi. Had the Delhi Jal Board officials not been alert, there would have been major casualty. The government should take up the issue with the Haryana government, he demanded.

Arvinder Singh Lovely who has been given additional charge of transport ministry in absence of Haroon Yusuf, said that Blueline bus accident victims would be given compensation provided the bus driver was found guilty.

New Delhi, December 28
Creative art is the necessary instrument of the efforts implicit in human metabolism to perfect itself, to enable inner vitalities to flow across inhibitions, frustrations and handicaps in the evolution towards wholeness, wrote Mulk Raj Anand after seeing Amarnath Sehgal’s sculptures in 1954.

Amarnath Sehgal’s works served as a bridge between the people and the artist, who stood for artistic freedom, courage and moral right of artists to their work. Eighty-five-year-old Amarnath Sehgal, India’s Henry Moore, passed away on Thursday. His death was condoled by artists and sculptors across the globe and by the vice-president of India, Hamid Ansari.

Sehgal’s death marks an end of an era of artistic righteousness. Sehgal will perhaps be best remembered for a 13-year lawsuit that he fought with the government of India to uphold an artist’s moral right over his work.

In 1959, the government of India commissioned a mural for the walls around the central arch of the Vigyan Bhavan. The sculptor was Amarnath Sehgal and the concept was provided by none other than the country’s then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who was a “great friend”.

Sehgal completed the 140 feet-long mural in 1962. For 20 years, it occupied centre-stage at Vigyan Bhavan. Then the building was renovated and the wall was pulled down. The remnants of the mural showcasing “rural India” were stashed away.

Distressed by the destruction of his work, Sehgal moved court, alleging violation of an artist’s moral rights. In 2005, the court settled the case in his favour and ordered that the remnants be returned to him. “I am convinced that an artist has moral right to his work, even if it has been paid for by an individual or by an organisation,” he once said in an interview.

Sehgal, who spent his time between Luxembourg and India, was the force behind the Creative Fund in 1985, which was formed to help third world artists. Most of his themes were contemporary - socio-economic ills that plagued India during his time and busts of public figures commissioned by the world organisations like the United Nations and the Indian government. And, in his own words, “The two sculptures that made an impact nationally were those on population explosion and terrorism.”

Sehgal put Indian sculpture on the global art map at a time when Indian sculptures were not recognised internationally or understood.

“He was widely travelled, his works were widely exhibited and he was a wonderful human being,” recalls Rajiv Lochan, director, National Gallery of Modern Art, which houses a large body of the artist’s works. Lochan especially remembers a sculpture at Robin Island in South Africa, which Sehgal sculpted as a tribute to Nelson Mandela and the end of apartheid.

Sehgal was a traditionalist. He refused to see art as an investment. Once when asked by an interviewer what he thought of the skyrocketing prices of art and its money spinning aspect, the artist said, “I am unhappy... I am no messiah, but moral values in art have taken a beating.” — IANS

On a tip-off on the illegal migrants of Bangladesh, a special drive was conducted for 48 hours under the supervision of inspector Rajesh Kumar and other staff of A.A.T.S./East District. These migrants have been apprehended from the area of police station Kalyanpuri.

New Delhi, December 28
Yamuna Satyagraha on Thursday observed 150 days of its struggle at the Yamuna Satyagraha Sthal at NH-24, adjacent to the proposed Games Village site.

It was celebrated as Yamuna Sangrakshak Samman Diwas, organised by retired schoolteacher and local farmer Baljit Singh.

Local farmers of Yamuna riverbed, members of RWAs and residents of colonies and villages adjacent to the Yamuna honoured people who have either worked on the Yamuna for years or made significant contribution to the Satyagrah over the past one year.

The day began with a havan, followed by the samman ceremony. The organising committee comprised residents of villages of Shakarpur, Samaspur, Mandavali and Patpar.

The organizing committee presented a shawl to “waterman” Rajender Singh in appreciation of his services and leadership of the Yamuna Satyagrah.

Others recognised included Vikram Soni, Ramesh Sharma of Gandhi Peace Foundation, Anita Soni, Shraddha Bakshi, N.N. Mishra, convenor of East Delhi, URJA, Sunil Prabhakar, an activist from Punjab, Kapil Mishra, convenor of Youth4Justice, Diwan Singh of Natural Heritage First and Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan.

The event saw people join the Satyagrah from all over Delhi. Bharat Bhushan from Young Blood Association, student leader Ajay Chaudhary, S. Kapoor from Inner Wheel Club were also present. This club had earlier organized a blood donation camp at Mayur Vihar, Phase-1.

Many people who had given support to The Yamuna Bhujal Yatra conducted during the first week of December 2007 were also honoured. They include Ashok Tyagi from Burari village, Ch. Hukum Singh and Sahab Singh Tanwar from Bhakhtawarpur, Rajpal Singh from Tiggipur, Ch. Bibuti from Gamri village and Hari Mallah from Qudsia Ghat.

Besides, some NGOs were also honoured for their commitment to the campaign. Shahid Bhagat Singh Brigade, a group of committed social workers represented by Suraj Bhan, and ex-servicemen were honoured for their support to the Satyagraha. Harvinder Rana, a resident of Bijwasan in West

Delhi, was also honoured for staging Yamuna Satyagraha at NH-8, Mahipal Pur.

It was resolved to observe 2008 as “Nadi Sangrakshan Satyagraha Varsh” (River Conservation Satyagraha Year). The Yamuna Satyagraha will spread to the rest of country to protect other rivers of the country.

Rajender Singh announced that in this direction, Nadi Sangrakshan Yatras would start from from Uttaranchal and Kanyakumari simultaneously.

This yatra will be organised by the Jal Biradari from all over India. Yamuna Satyagraha in Delhi continues to be the source of inspiration for this yatra.

New Delhi, December 28
Octogenarian Anasuya Sen has made an appeal for freedom of her son Binayak, a doctor in Chhattisgarh district, who has been in jail since May 14.

Sen, a social activist, was the all-India vice-president of the People’s Union of Civil Liberties and the secretary of the Chhattisgarh chapter of the human rights organisation.

Sen was arrested for treating an ailing ultra-Left prisoner in Raipur Central Jail. The prisoner’s brother had asked Sen to look up his aging brother, which he did with the “permission of the jail authorities”, the doctor’s mother claimed.

“The fact that the prisoner was a Naxalite gave the state an opportunity to imprison Sen under the state’s public security laws,” she said in her appeal, adding that her son was “a patriot whose entire professional life was devoted to the untiring service of the poor”.

The appeal came after the Supreme Court rejected a bail petition moved by Sen’s wife Ilina on December 10. The Chhattisgarh High Court had earlier refused to bail Sen out.

Sen, who graduated from the Christian Medical College in Vellore and followed it up with a master’s degree in paediatrics, joined the Jawaharlal Nehru University as an assistant professor. He left JNU to work at a tuberculosis research centre and hospital run by the Friends’ Rural Centre at Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh.

He also worked among the miners in Chhattisgarh and joined the trade union movement launched by trade union activist Shankar Guha Neogi in the mines of Dalli-Rajhara and Nandini.

While working with the Chhattisgarh Mines Shramik Sangh, Sen set up a health centre for the miners, which grew into a 25-bed hospital. He was also involved in improving the health of tribals in the villages of Dhamtari and Bastar districts. — IANS

Similarly plot No C-344 in Sector-122 was allotted in the category of 122 sq mt size whereas in Noida Authority’s plan this series is of 300 sq mt. size.

New Delhi, December 28
Indian Medical Association, the apex body of doctors in the country, has conferred its national award of ‘distinguished achievement of highest order’ on Dr Purshotam Lal for performing the largest number of angioplasties/stenting.

The award was given to him by the IMA at a function organised at Nagpur yesterday, IMA said. Angioplasties/stenting is an alternative to the heart surgeries, preferred for young heart patients.

Dr Lal, a Padambhushan awardee (2003) and Dr B C Roy National Award winner (2005) is a “single operator” of angioplasties/stenting in the country not taking assistance from any other cardiologist.

Dr Lal, chairman and chief cardiologist of Metro Heart Institute, has introduced a large number of procedures as alternative to heart surgeries and has been listed in the Limca Book of Records several times for various feats.

According to him, coronary artery disease has been increasing very fast in India affecting people at a very young age.

Coronary angioplasties/stenting through interventional (non-surgical) method is becoming a preferred way of treatment, especially for the young patients as it save them from traumatic heart surgeries.

Over 80,000 angioplasties/stenting are performed every year in the country and during 2006-07, Dr Lal’s contribution as “single operator” of the popular medical technique, was a unique achievement by any standard, according to the IMA.

New Delhi, December 28
Three women musicians from the Netherlands are coming to Delhi for an evening of enchanting classics.

Mireille Heijltjes, Lisanne Soeterbroek and Stephanie Steiner will perform at the concert in Siri Fort auditorium on January 1.

The concert being hosted by the youth wing of the Art of Living Foundation, will include works by Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin, Hummel, Glinka, Elgar, Brahms, Scharwenka and Monti.

A press release issued by the Foundation here today said that the proceeds of the concert will go towards theservice initiatives of the two organsiations.

The three musicians have performed in Bangalore and will be holding concerts in Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune.

Mireille Heijltjes has studied at the Royal Conservatory of the Hague with the Russian concert pianist Naum Grubert.

She has held many concerts in Denmark, France, Germany, Greece and Russia besides her own home country.

Lisanne Soeterbroek is a soloist with the State Orchestra of Frankfurt an der Oder, the Kerkraddas Symphony Orchestra, Musica The Hague, Symphony Orchestra I Medici, the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Nieder Rhein, the Limburgs Symphony Orchestra apart from several brass and woodwind orchestras.

Stephanie Steiner, a violonist, has made orchestra tours to Ireland, Italy, Japan, New York, Scotland and Spain.