The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Delhi and neighbourhood

Indian- American fashion designer Anand John's sister and mother join models in a candlelight protest against his arrest at Jantar Mantar in the Capital on Saturday. John has been charged with rape of models in US. — Tribune photo by Mukesh Aggarwal

CM opens home for girls
New Delhi, January 12
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today inaugurated a home for girls, who either work as servants in houses or are neglected by the relatives with whom they stay, at Tehkhand village in South Delhi.

Winged visitors
Bharatpur’s loss is Agra’s gain
Agra, January 12
Exotic Siberian cranes, Chinese koots and flamingos are among the winged visitors that have chosen to steer clear of the now dry Bharatpur bird sanctuary and make a beeline for Sur Sarovar near here.

Amitian cars at Auto Expo

New Delhi, January 12
Students of Amity school have created waves in the automobile industry by designing and developing India’s first 4WD BAJA vehicle and India’s first Tri-Fuel Amity Hybrid car. The cars were unveiled at the ongoing Auto Expo in the Capital.

Amity Hybrid car on view at the ongoing Auto Expo at Pragati Maidan in the Capital on Saturday. — Tribune photo by Mukesh Aggarwal

Student commits suicide
Greater Noida,January12
A PGDM student of C. Mat Institute here committed suicide on Friday night. His suicide note said that he was feeling depressed for not having faired well in his examination.

Man beats wife to death
Greater Noida,January12
An unemployed man bought liquor with money given by his wife to buy vegetables from the market .He beat his wife to death when she protested. The police has arrested the man on the complaint of his brother-in law.

NRI students visit a village
Faridabad, January 12
As many as 35 students from 12 countries visited Sagarpur village near here today. They asked questions about gender equality and the state role in the welfare of students.

Tension on St Stephen’s campus
New Delhi, January 12
The atmosphere on St Stephen’s College campus is tensed. Rev. Valson Thampu, the OSD and acting principal, recently served a showcause notice to two women colleagues, threatening to initiate disciplinary action against them, if they did not explain their position.

Blueline claims first life of the year
New Delhi, January 12
The Blueline claimed the first victim of the year on Saturday in the Kalayanpuri area. The victim was crossing the road near Kondli Bridge, where a speeding Blueline bus rammed into him.

Robber arrested
New Delhi, January 12
The police yesterday arrested inter-state robber Kabir Sheikh from the Yamuna Bazaar area.

CMO held
Faridabad, January 12
The Haryana State Vigilance Bureau caught Dr Pankaj Wats, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Faridabad, red-handed while accepting graft money. Dr Watts was caught red-handed while accepting Rs 15,000 (RPT) and Rs 15,000 as graft money from a firm called Data Entry Operation. — TNS

HUDCO members appointed
New Delhi, January 12
With the appointment of Ishwar Singh and environmentalist Dinesh Mahajan, as non-official part-time members, the total strength of members on the board of Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) Limited stands at eight, a press release said. — TNS

	Cold wave returns Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 The cold wave conditions are back in the Capital with the minimum temperature falling by over four degrees. The minimum temperature was recorded at seven degrees Celsius. Yesterday, the minimum was 11.5 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature also declined by three degrees. It was recorded at 20.4 degrees Celsius, one degree less than normal, the Met office said. The cold wave conditions are likely to continue in the next few days due to snowfall in the northern states. However, the weatherman has predicted a clear sky with a thin layer of mist in the morning, for tomorrow. The minimum temperature will hover around seven degrees Celsius. Dry weather prevailed over most parts of the country. Current meteorological analysis suggests that the present condition would prevail for a couple of days. The minimum temperatures have decreased by 4-5 degrees Celsius over most parts of North, Central and adjoining East India. They are likely to fall further by 3-4 degrees Celsius during next 48 hours. Amritsar recorded the lowest minimum temperature at 1.5 degrees Celsius. Jammu and Kashmir might witness isolated snowfall during the next 24 hours.
	Abhay performs at JPM School Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 Master Abhay Goyle gave a piano recital at the JPM Senior Secondary School (Blind Relief Association). Abhay, a student of seventh standard of Modern School, said: “it is my pleasure to perform for who can feel my music deeply. I am grateful to my family and my teacher for encouraging me to play the piano.” He plays Hindi film melodies from the 40s to 80s, devotional, patriotic and English songs. Abhay has been referred as the “Youngest Talent on Piano” in the country in the Limca Book of National Records in 2007. He is also studying western classical music from Theme School, affiliated to the Trinity College, London. He started playing the grand piano at six. Among Abhay’s mentors are his grandfather and Brian Silas. Abhay has been honoured by former President Abdul Kalam. He was selected as the runners up in the Arts Category by POGO channel for their ‘Pogo Amazing Kids Awards - 2004’. Abhay’s has played with Dr.L. Subramanium, Kavita Krishnamurty, Nitin Mukesh, Pankaj Udhas, Jagjit Singh, Anup Jalota, Amjad Ali Khan, Naushad Ali, Alka Yagnik and Sudesh Bhosle.
	CM opens home for girls Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today inaugurated a home for girls, who either work as servants in houses or are neglected by the relatives with whom they stay, at Tehkhand village in South Delhi. This is the fourth such home in the Capital. It would house 30 girls and is being run by an NGO, Khushi Samay Centre for Equality. The home is a joint venture of the Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan and the human resource development ministry. The HRD ministry will release Rs 6,800 per child, living in such homes, per annum. Dikshit said that her government had been making buildings available for such homes. She announced that the Directorate of Education would provide vans to children living in such homes for educational excursions. Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely and local MLA Ramvir Singh Bhiduri were also present.
	Winged visitors Bharatpur’s loss is Agra’s gain Brij Khandelwal Agra, January 12 Exotic Siberian cranes, Chinese koots and flamingos are among the winged visitors that have chosen to steer clear of the now dry Bharatpur bird sanctuary and make a beeline for Sur Sarovar near here. Named after Surdas, the famous poet of Braj Bhasha, the lake is situated along the Delhi-Agra national highway, 20 km from Agra. For the past three years, the birds have been coming to this 783-hectare lake with more than 300 hectares of land under water. It has been recognised as a wetland by the National Wetland Commission. “Till some years ago, the area looked barren and deserted. Now, there is life around with the constant chirping of birds in the wilderness,” Vasudha Mehta of the NGO, Wild Life SOS, which runs the Agra Bear Rescue Centre, home to 400 sloth bear in the Sur Sarovar Complex, told IANS. “The area is developing into a major attraction. There seems to be a major reawakening of interest in this land”. The bird sanctuary at Bharatpur in Rajasthan, located barely 50 km from Agra, faced a water crisis for the first time in 2000. Since then, it has failed to come up with a solution. For several years in a row, it has been receiving only one-third the average rainfall and the neighbouring dams and rivers have dried up. While the threat of de-recognition from the UNESCO looms over Bharatpur and the Rajasthan government is busy drawing up alternative plans to rejuvenate the habitat, the birds seem to be in no mood to wait. Pelicans, painted storks, whistling teels, spoonbills, Siberian cranes, Chinese koots and flamingos are among the 1,50,000 birds flocking to Sur Sarovar, once called Keitham Lake. The forest and tourism departments of Uttar Pradesh have drawn up plans to develop it as a bird sanctuary. The lake is one of the largest artificial water reservoirs built by the British almost a century ago to look after the water needs of Agra. R.B. Gautam, range officer of Keitham Lake, says a Rs 40-million project has been cleared to add the necessary infrastructure such as artificial mud islands and fencing work. Various tourism bodies in Agra are lobbying hard to make the state government chalk out plans to convert Sur Sarovar into a tourist hub and a weekend gateway for locals. Surendra Sharma, president of the Braj Mandal Heritage Conservation Society, said, “The whole area around Sur Sarovar is of cultural and religious importance. It is the birthplace of Renuka - Parsuram’s mother, the meeting place of Surdas and saint-poet Vallabhacharya, and has an old Shani Dev temple. It is here that the river Yamuna takes a U-turn.” — IANS
	Amitian cars at Auto Expo Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 Students of Amity school have created waves in the automobile industry by designing and developing India’s first 4WD BAJA vehicle and India’s first Tri-Fuel Amity Hybrid car. The cars were unveiled at the ongoing Auto Expo in the Capital. ‘Team Mettle’ comprising seven students — Varun Aggarwal, Abhinav Kumar, Nitin Sharma, Gundeep Singh, Sourabh Kumar, Vibhore Trehan and Akshar Tandon, under the guidance of Keshvendra Choudhary, designed the 4WD BAJA vehicle. The vehicle won the Chairman’s Best Effort Award. Pawan Goenka, president, Mahindra & Mahindra presented the award. Ten students - M. Pavan, Abhay Goyal, Himanshu Gupta, Abhishek Kashyap Kamal Shamnani, Nakul Gupta, Chanderkant Suman, Varun Chawla, Paras Khanna and Udit Dhingra, under the guidance of Keshvendra Choudhary, S B L Garg, head of the department, mechanics & automation and Arun Jindal designed the Tri-Fuel Amity Hybrid car. The students shared their experiences while designing the cars. DELPHI, a leading R & D global organisation in automation, has extended financial assistance to these students, for further research on the prototype. Atul Chauhan, president, Amity said that Amity aimed at promoting talent among students by providing them the necessary infrastructure. He said, “The technologies used in both the cars are contemporary and revolutionary and they will bring a sea change in the automobile sector. The cars are both consumer and environment-friendly.”
	Student commits suicide Our Correspondent Greater Noida,January12 A PGDM student of C. Mat Institute here committed suicide on Friday night. His suicide note said that he was feeling depressed for not having faired well in his examination. Sudhir Chauhan of Gorakhpur, a resident of D-70 in Alpha-I had taken admission in C. Mat this year. After coming from college, he went out for a walk. He returned at 10 p.m. and bolted the room door from inside. At about 11.30 p.m. two of Sudhir’s friends knocked at the door. When there was no response, they peeped in from the window and found Sudhir hanging from from the fan.
	Man beats wife to death Our Correspondent Greater Noida,January12 An unemployed man bought liquor with money given by his wife to buy vegetables from the market .He beat his wife to death when she protested. The police has arrested the man on the complaint of his brother-in law. Mannish Mathew,36, resident of house No.201 in Beta-I lost his job with the marketing department of a company . He had married Mary Alphonsa, 40, in 2001.Mary has a job in Christian Missionary in Knowledge Park-II here. The couple married for seven years didn’t have an issue. Mary’s brother Rajan, a resident of D-67, Sector Beta-I, said Manish had hit the bottle after losing the job . He would return home late, drunk, usually accompanied by a friend or two, leading to an altercation between the couple. When Manish reached home drunk at 10 p.m. yesterday along with a friend, Mary gave him some money to bring some vegetables from the market. Instead,he bought liquor. There was an argument. Manish picked up an iron rod and started hitting Mary with it who slumped on ground in a pool of blood when hit on the head. Leaving his injured wife, Manish rushed to fetch his brother-in-law, Rajan. When they both reached home, Mary was dead. Rajan informed the Kasna police who took Manish Mathew into custody and Mary’s dead for autopsy.
	NRI students visit a village Tribune News Service Faridabad, January 12 As many as 35 students from 12 countries visited Sagarpur village near here today. They asked questions about gender equality and the state role in the welfare of students. The students, aged between 20and 28, visited the village under the Know India programme of the Union Ministry of Overseas and India Affairs. The students were from Canada, UK, USA, Fiji, Israel, Malaysia, South Africa, Trinidad and New Zealand. Before coming to Haryana the team had spent one day each in Goa and Tamil Nadu. The women wanted to know more about gender equality. They put several posers to officials of Nehru Yuva Kendra while on way to the village. To mark the Youth week beginning Kendra ,officials organised a panel discussion with Panches and Youth Club members and student visitors. District coordinator of the Kendra S.P.Pandey said that the NRI students exhibited lot of maturity. They also took part in a Kabadi match, danced and sang with the village folk and spent some time with the families.
	Tension on St Stephen’s campus Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 The atmosphere on St Stephen’s College campus is tensed. Rev. Valson Thampu, the OSD and acting principal, recently served a showcause notice to two women colleagues, threatening to initiate disciplinary action against them, if they did not explain their position. It is alleged that the teachers’ did not conduct themselves properly in classrooms. Meanwhile, the upset teachers have apprised the DUTA and the vice-chancellor, Delhi University, of the notice and have requested DUTA’s intervention in the matter. DUTA president Aditya Narayana Misra said, “In the St Stephens episode, the faculty’s freedom of expression is being attacked by Thampu. He is trying to harass teachers. “
	Blueline claims first life of the year Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 The Blueline claimed the first victim of the year on Saturday in the Kalayanpuri area. The victim was crossing the road near Kondli Bridge, where a speeding Blueline bus rammed into him. The deceased was declared brought dead after he was rushed to a nearby hospital. The driver and the conductor of the bus fled from the scene soon after the accident.