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SC permits ‘jallikattu’ in TN
State relieved at SC order
Religious Tourism |
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UP Chief Minister Mayawati celebrates her 52nd birthday in New Delhi on Tuesday.
— Tribune photo by Mukesh Aggarwal
Maya touched by Sonia Gandhi’s birthday wishes
CM believes in UP division
I-T dept to file appeal in HC
‘TERI report no clean chit to cola firms’
LPG explosion stokes Kolkata fire
Party’s popularity eroding, admits CPM
Karnataka Elections Cabinet nod to 9 senior level appointments
BJP objects to Dasmunshi’s remark on Advani
Bharat Ratna
Triloki Das awarded Glancy Gold Medal
Ganga Expressway
inaugurated
Shell in scrap explodes, 2 killed Techie seeks relief from police, Airtel Thief ‘missing’ after jumping into gutter
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SC permits ‘jallikattu’ in TN
New Delhi, January 15 Apparently taking a swipe at the state government for citing religious sentiments for lifting the ban on “jallikattu” event in its original “cruel form” but taking a contrary stand in the Sethusamundram case, a Bench of Chief Justice and Justices R.V. Raveendran and J.M. Panchal imposed 12-point safety conditions to be followed by the authorities and the organisers. “We don’t know (how) Tamil Nadu government is speaking about religious sentiments… the same arguments may go against the government in another case,” the Bench observed, though not mentioning itself about the Sethusamundram case explicitly. But this was made explicit by the counsel for Tamil Nadu Animal Welfare Board (AWB), senior advocate K.K. Venugopal, who said court must be referring to in the Sethusamundram case, in which the state government has different stand on “religious sentiments”. After over an hour long heated arguments by Venugopal and state government counsel Gopal Subramaniam, the court agreed to relax the ban on the bullfight. The government today came out with new figures and revealed that the event was held in a wider scale covering 12 districts and the total number of places could be over 400. Under the conditions imposed by the apex court, the government was directed to hold ‘jallikattu’ under strict supervision of deputy collectors assisted by the police, erect double barricades around the arena, mandatory registration of the organising clubs, proper medical facilities on the spot, no torture of any kind of the animal, including applying chilly powder to their eyes and intoxicating them with arrack, proper uniforms for bullfighters to distinguish them from public. While asking the government to ensure that no injury was caused to the animal as well as the participants in the fight, the court directed Doordarshan to prepare video footage of the events and allowed AWB workers also to have separate video recording. The collectors of all 12 districts were directed to submit reports about the events to the apex court within two weeks. Though the main event is to take place today on the occasion of Pongal and two subsequent days but in many places it continues for over a week, the court was told. While Subramanim tried to make a case for lifting the ban on an assurance that the religious sentiments of people were attached to it and government would ensure full protection to animals and participants, Venugopal wanted the ban to continue saying “religion is always subject to public order.”
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State relieved at SC order
Chennai, January 15 Tension had been prevailing in all the 11 districts of southern Tamil Nadu since the apex court on January 11 banned the bull taming sport celebrated along with “Pongal”, the harvest festival, and villagers in Madurai had been fasting for the past three days and observed “black Pongal” today in protest against the ban. The state government today assured that all restrictions imposed by the Supreme Court, like the presence of senior government officials and veterinary surgeons to ensure that the bulls were not tortured with chilli powder and intoxicated with arrack to make them more ferocious, would be enforced. Last year, too, the Madras High Court had banned the popular sport, but since an appeal was pending before the apex court it was allowed to be held with more or less the same restrictions. Around 2,500 bulls have been raised for this centuries-old sport and Alanganallur village in Madurai, 500 km from here, is the main venue for “jallikattu”, which draws large crowds and even tourists from abroad. Even after the court ban small “jallikkattu” events were held in Sivaganga district on Saturday and the police booked the organisers. With sentiments running high among angry villagers in the southern part of the state and the stand taken by almost all political parties that felt that the ban was an “affront to Tamil culture and tradition”, the Tamil Nadu government filed a review petition seeking the lifting of the ban. All of them pointed out that the sport might be dangerous for the men trying to tame the bulls and at times had proved to be fatal, but the animals were never tortured instead worshipped before the game. The Tamil Nadu government had been in a dilemma as it did not have such a large police force to implement the “jallikkattu” ban, particularly after the organisers and villagers in the southern part of the state were in no mood to relent.
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Bihar to develop ‘Sikh circuit’
Ambarish Dutta Tribune News Service
Patna, January 15 Besides the Sikh circuit, work was already on to promote Buddhist, Jain, Sufi and eco-tourism circuits to promote religious tourism both in domestic and international markets. The proposed Sikh circuit reportedly includes shrines like Harmandar Sahib in Patna city, which has been the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh, Gurdwara at Gai Ghat, Guru Ka Bagh near Masalmi, Gurdwara Handi Sahib at Danapur, Nanakshahi Gurdwara near Lalganj in Vaishali and Akbarpur Namakshahi Sangat at Nawada. Sources in the state tourism department said it was working out a four-day package trip in the Sikh circuit soon where tourists would be offered Punjabi food, besides an oportunity of spiritual journey across Sikh shrines. Thousands of Sikhs and followers of other religions from different parts of the country and the world visit Takht Harmandar Sahib in Patna every day. “Many may not be aware about other places listed in the circuit. The four-day package will formalise them with their historical signifinance,” sources said. The government has also planned an aggresive marketing of the new circuit across the country through banners and posters, besides highlighting the same at the tourism and trade fair in Bangalore,Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai in near future. While Takht Harmandir Sahib is known to all sikh devotess, Guru Ki Bagh near Masalmi originally belonged to the local Nawabs, Krim Baksh and Rahim Baksh. It was learnt that in 17th century, Guru Teg Bahadur on his way from Assam had visited an almost barren garden (bagh) which then had turned green.This impressed Nawabs to donate the garden to Guru. Another destination, Gurdwara Handi Sahiib in Danapur in the proposed Sikh circuit is said to be the place where Guru Gobind Singh first had stopped on his way to Punjab. The Nanakshasi Gurdwara near Lalganj in Vaishali has in its possesion of more than 300-year-old hadwritten epic during Guru Nanak’s time. The Akbarpur Nanakshasi in Nawada is a place associated with Guru Nanak’s son. Meanwhile, thousands of Sikh devotess who arrived here from different parts of the country to attend the birth aniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh at Takht Harmandar Sahib were reportedly unhappy over the poor facilities and minimum arrangement at the station.
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SP leaders under ‘house arrest’ as Maya parties
Lucknow, January 15 Heavy police presence, including the RAF, the PAC and the police, were patrolling the street that houses the SP office, former Chief Minister’s residence and other frontal organisations. Barricades checked the flow of traffic and disallowed SP workers from carrying out marches in protest. Officially, no senior officer confirmed the house arrest. “I do not know anything about it” was the response of chief secretary P.K. Mishra as well as principal secretary J.N. Chamber. However, SSP, Lucknow, Akhil Kumar confirmed that SP workers, who were planning to take out a procession towards the Raj Bhawan, were prevented to do so on grounds of maintaining law and order. The SP across the state had given a call to launch an agitation against the implementation of the Rs 40,000 crore Ganga Expressway today. Youth and women members from the party were going around the districts, begging bowls in hand, collecting Rs 52 from each district to donate to Chief Minister Mayawati, “To feed her ever increasing greed for money”. Responding to the move to keep him and his party workers confined to their party office, Mulayam Singh Yadav said this once again proved that Mayawati did not believe in democracy.
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Maya touched by Sonia Gandhi’s birthday wishes
Lucknow, January 15 A visibly touched Mayawati said even the PM, who is at the moment on an official tour of China, took some time out from his hectic schedule to call her personally. “I express my thanks to him for this thoughtful gesture”. Asked if she had received greetings from her beta noire Samajwadi president Mulayam Singh Yadav or her erstwhile ‘rakhi brother’ BJP leader Lalji Tandon, Mayawati said telephone calls were pouring in since morning but she had been busy taking meetings and now addressing the media. Yadav however, told the media that he was ready to give his good wishes, provided she was willing to accept them.
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CM believes in UP division
Lucknow, January 15 Answering a question during the press briefing on her birthday, Mayawati said she was following in the footsteps of Dr B.R. Ambedkar who believed in the efficiency of smaller states. “If I get the go-ahead from the Central government, I would waste no time in getting the required approval of the Vidhan Sabha to carve out three more states, Bundelkhand, Purvanchal and West Uttar Pradesh, the demand for which has been long-standing”. Admitting that she would be most grateful if the Central government initiated such an exercise, Mayawati, however, refused to divulge which state she would like to represent in such an eventuality. “You would know when the time comes,” she jokingly quipped. Contrary to Mayawati’s stand is that of former Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav who described today’s statement of the trifurcation of the state as “uncalled for”.
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I-T dept to file appeal in HC
New Delhi, January 15 The ministry’s move comes in the backdrop of strained ties between Mayawati’s BSP and the Congress in the recent months after the initial bonhomie when she stormed back to power in the May assembly elections. Senior officials of the ministry and the Revenue Department today said the high court would be approached for remedial action. “Action will be taken as per the law,” Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) spokesperson said when asked to comment on the Centre’s plan of action after the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal Order (ITAT) gave a clean chit to Mayawati in a disproportionate assets case and reprieve to the BSP supremo. The department could file the appeal by April against the ITAT order which held that the BSP supporters had given gifts ( which included cash and house properties) out of love and affection. The case pertains to the assessment year 2003-04. — PTI
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‘TERI report no clean chit to cola firms’
New Delhi, January 15 “Without standards for pesticide residues in colas, soft drinks remain unclean,” Narain said in response to TERI report: “Independent third party assessment of Coca-Cola facilities in India”, while expressing surprise that the government had still not issued standards for pesticide residues in the final product. She said the TERI report could not be used to give cola companies a clean chit on pesticide residues. “TERI has not tested the final product, which we drink. The CSE study in 2003 and 2006 tested bottles of colas and found pesticides above safe limits in the drinks. The test was repeated by N.K. Ganguly committee of the health ministry that also confirmed the presence of pesticides in the bottles sold in the market”. She said TERI tested raw water and input water in selected plants of Coca Cola company. “Moreover, TERI tests also find pesticide residues in groundwater that clearly suggest that problem of contamination is real and needs to be addressed. It is precisely for this reason that the CSE demanded setting up of pesticide residue standards to ensure safety of the final product,” she said. Narain also said that the TERI report confirmed that plants were situated in acutely water-stressed areas. “In most cases, the report finds that the company could not supply environment impact assessment reports, which would explain how the decision for setting up the plant in these water-starved areas was taken. This clearly explains the anger of local communities regarding extraction of groundwater for beverages, which is adding to shortages of water in the area”. She said in some plants the report also conceded that the company was not meeting mandatory wastewater discharge standards of the pollution control board. “The CSE released its first study in 2003. In 2004 the JPC report recommended the need to set up safety standards for soft drinks. By 2006, the BIS finalised the standards but did not notify them because of pressure of companies. After the August 2006 release of the CSE study that re-confirmed the presence of pesticides in the final product, the government informed the Parliament that it would finalise standards for soft drinks by January 2007. Now over a year later, standards are still shuffling between different committees and sub-committees. The union health ministry is succumbing to pressure to find every possible reason to delay and prevaricate the setting up of safety standards for colas,” she added.
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LPG explosion stokes Kolkata fire
Kolkata, January 15 State fire brigade minister Pratim Chatterjee told mediapersons at Writers Buildings in the evening that 90 per cent fire had been extinguished. He hoped within next 24 hours the fire would be put off completely. Home secretary Prasad Ranjan Roy said an expert committee had been set up to look into the causes of the fire and the delay in launching fire-fighting operations. Meanwhile, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia faxed a protest note to Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee against the state fire brigade minister for “misbehaving with ministers, MPs, MLAs and other officials” sent by her to Kolkata for helping the fire-hit businessmen and traders. Rajasthan education minister Kalicharan Saraf and MP Subhas Maharia and few others accosted Chatterjee on the Writers Buildings corridor at 6 pm as he was leaving the office. They requested him to wait a few more minutes to hear from them their experiences during a visit to the Burrabazar area. But, the minister refused to hold any meeting with them since they did not have any prior appointment. Chatterjee, however, claimed he had reported he whole matter to the Chief Minister. The minister said he had not insulted the Rajasthan ministers and MPs. The fire issue figured at the CPM’s party conference, which passed a resolution demanding adequate compensation to the fire-affected businessmen and other residents. The meeting also demanded a high-powered inquiry into the incident. Meanwhile, the Birla family donated Rs 2 crore to the Burrabazar traders association. Several Birla family members also visited the Burrabazar and met the affected businessmen.
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Party’s popularity eroding, admits CPM
Kolkata, January 15 The meeting also discussed issues concerning industrialisation initiated by state industries minister Nirupam Sen. The conference endorsed the government’s new industrialisation policy but the leadership had been cautioned against creating problems of the likes of Singur and Nandigram again. Jyoti Basu, party state secretary Biman Bose, senior leaders, Benoy Konar and Shyamal Chakraborty, among others, spoke on the political and organisational resolutions, which Biman Bose had placed. Basu warned the party leaders that the party, which had been built after so much struggle and sacrifices, would perish if the leaders and workers did not rectify themselves now and work honestly and sincerely for the interest of the people and the party. Basu blamed the party’s powerful group for indulging in various nefarious activities against the party’s interests. Wrong handling of the Singur and Nandigram issues was also criticised by him and several others. Later, talking to the mediapersons, Biman Bose admitted they had taken certain faulty steps and the wrong activities of a section in the party had hit the party’s image and popularity. He said the party had decided to discuss the problem threadbare later at the district and the grass-root levels and take necessary steps accordingly. Men make mistakes and they also rectify the mistakes and we too made the mistakes and we would also rectify the same, Biman Bose remarked.
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Redrawn constituencies will cause delay: EC
Prashant Sood Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 15 Election Commission officials said once the report was notified by the government it would need at least four months to carry out rationalisation of polling stations, readjustment of electoral rolls and other related tasks. They said the commission would need four months to complete the exercise in smaller states and six months to do it in bigger states as the task required extensive field work. The term of President’s Rule in Karnataka will end on May 28 and elections in the state are likely to be held before the date. The commission has set March 10 as the date for finalising electoral rolls in the state and announcement of the poll schedule will be made only after the task is completed. Chief election commissioner N Gopalaswamy and the two other election commissioners had met officials in Karnataka on January 9 to review preparations for the Assembly poll.
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Cabinet nod to 9 senior level appointments New Delhi, January 15 The other appointments are as below: (i) Mohammed Haleem Khan, IAS (UP:77), presently joint secretary and additional financial adviser, ministry of defence as secretary, Central Information Commission in the rank and pay of additional secretary, vice Rita Sinha, IAS (UP:73). (ii) Bevis A. Coutinho, IAS (KN:77), presently joint secretary, ministry of home affairs as additional secretary and financial adviser, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, ministry of agriculture vice Rita Sharma, IAS (UP:74). (iii) C.V. Ananda Bose, IAS (KL:77), presently joint secretary, Department of Atomic Energy as additional secretary, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, ministry of agriculture vice S.M. Desalphine, IAS (JK:74). (iv) Parvez Dewan, IAS (JK:77), chairman and managing director, India Tourism Development Corporation Limited under the ministry of tourism to be upgraded in his present post, to the rank and pay of additional secretary. (v) Surajit Mitra, IAS (AM:77), presently joint secretary, Department of Heavy Industry, ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises as additional secretary in the same department, in the upgraded post. (vi) Jayant M. Mauskar, IAS (AM:77), presently joint secretary, ministry of environment and forests as additional secretary, ministry of environment and forests vice Siddhartha Behura, IAS (UP:73). (vii) Mrutyunjay Sarangi, IAS (TV:77), officer on special duty, Delimitation Commission of India to be upgraded in his present post, to the rank and pay of additional secretary. (viii) Gireesh B. Pradhan, IAS (MH:77), presently joint secretary, ministry of power as additional secretary, ministry of power in the vacancy of A.K. Khurana, IAS (UP:76).
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BJP objects to Dasmunshi’s remark on Advani
New Delhi, January 15 “He (Dasmunsi) is information and broadcasting minister. Moreover, he is also the parliamentary affairs minister. His remark about Vajpayee is not only unfair but also unbecoming of him,” BJP deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha Sushma Swaraj said. She said it would have been better had he not made such comments. Asked if Advani wrote to the Prime Minister on his own or the matter was discussed in the party, Swaraj said the party was unanimous on the issue. There could not be two opinions in the party at all, she said in reply to the question. When her attention was drawn toward similar nominations being made by other parties, she said the party was not against anybody or any political leader chosen for the coveted award. “Vajpayee is a ‘ratna’ so can be other leaders,” she added. Advani is entitled to make any recommendation as the leader of the opposition, she said, dismissing a query in this regard.
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I have nothing more to say: Advani
New Delhi, January 15 “I have said whatever I wanted to. I have nothing more to say now,” he told UNI on the sidelines of a function here. Advani had recently written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh proposing the nation’s highest civilian award be conferred on the veteran politician and former Prime Minister. Following his suggestion, various parties started proposing their own candidates. BSP supremo and UP Chief Minister Mayawati suggested her mentor and party founder Kanshi Ram, the CPM proposed party patriach and former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu (though Basu denied he was in the running) and the Samajwadi Janata Party proposed its chief and former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar. The RLD named former Prime Minister Charan Singh, the RJD backed veteran socialist leader and former Bihar Chief Minister Karpoori Thakur and the Lok Janshakti Party proposed social reformer Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, former Defence Minister and prominent Dalit leader Jagjivan Ram and prominent singer Mohd. Rafi. — UNI
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Triloki Das awarded Glancy Gold Medal
Jaipur, January 15 As secretary-general of the Social Security Foundation, Khandelwal has been campaigning for better deal for the senior citizens. One of the recent successes has been to persuade the central government to increase old age pension from Rs 75 to Rs 200 a month. The Centre has also urged all the State governments to match this contribution by another Rs 200 a month to make the pension for the senior citizens Rs 400 a month. The award was conferred by Governor S.K. Singh, who is also Chancellor of Rajasthan University. Khandelwal passed out from Maharaja College, Jaipur, with distinction way back in 1951.
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Ganga Expressway
inaugurated Lucknow, January 15 Along with this she bestowed upon the people of nine drought affected districts of Bundelkhand an action plan worth of Rs 1,600 crore, a health insurance scheme for BPL families in 14 districts expected to benefit 21.70 lakh families, a 4,000 MW ultra mega thermal power project to be set up at Lalitpur in Bundelkhand.
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Shell in scrap explodes, 2 killed Dehra Dun, January 15 As per the preliminary investigation, no foul play is suspected in the incident. SP (rural) K.S Nagliyal said the incident occurred when one of the deceased was beating the shell sold to him today by Ayub Hasan of the same village. Ayub told the police that he had picked the shell thinking it to be a piece of scrap from the firing range in Raipur area near Song river about a year back. While Sharafat died on the spot, his minor sister expired on way to the hospital. Their father Abdul Hasan is admitted at a local hospital. No case had been registered till the filing of this report.
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Techie seeks relief from police, Airtel Bangalore, January 15 The software engineer- Lakshmana Kailash K. was arrested from the city on August 31 last year by the Pune police. The arrest took place on the basis of internet Protocol address provided by his service provider - Bharti. Twenty six year old Lakshmana spent 50 days in Yerawada Jail in Pune in the company of hardened criminals after his arrest under Section 295A of the IPC for “a premeditated and malicious act intended to attack religious sentiments” besides Section 67 of the Information Technology Act for publishing ‘lascivious’ material.
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Thief ‘missing’ after jumping into gutter
Mumbai, January 15 Even after a six-hour rescue-and-track operation by a team of seven fire brigade officials, he could not be found anywhere, forcing the team to abandon the search. According to the police, the alleged thief was trying to escape from the scene after stealing five kg of copper wire from the area.
— UNI
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