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200% rise in e-billing business
Illegal mining to be checked
Fighting terrorism |
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Business picks up
Cool response at JNU
Mock attacks at metro stations
Erring gas agencies in trouble
S Korean, Italian students visit DPS
Students demand hostel rooms
Book studies monuments
Assamese trader’s murderer held
Three get life for abduction, murder
Gang of snatchers smashed
Drunk driver kills labourer
Mukhi decries rise in petrol prices
Arms banned in social functions
Garden Tourism fest begins
Clear sky greets Delhiites
Restore broken church: DMC
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200% rise in e-billing business
New Delhi, February 14 An average individual saves about 80 hours of his time by paying his bills through the Internet. India’s Internet population stands at over 100 million. It is set to reach 125 million by 2008-09. Annually, an average Indian household in top 10 cities pays approximately 50 bills, in areas like — finances, insurance, telecommunications and utilities companies, electricity, water, house and other civic taxes. “Offline bill payment is time-consuming, and doing it online not only benefits billers but consumers as well. Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) as a potential cost saver, it’s a great revenue opportunity for banks and third-party service providers. Banks are in a good position to cash in because of their reputation as ‘trusted companies’ and should recognise that their online customers are more profitable than their offline customers,” said ASSOCHAM president Venugopal N Dhoot. While automated bank debits for bill payment have been available to consumers for more than a decade, it’s the benefit of self-service at any hour and increasing comfort with online financial transactions that are attracting netizens to Internet bill payment services in large numbers. In a survey conducted by ASSOCHAM on “e-Billing – A Better Option For Convenience”, it was discovered that Mumbai has taken lead in e-billing as about 28% of its population takes advantage of e-billing transactions followed by 22% of Delhi, 12.5% of Chennai, 12% of Bangalore, and 5.2% of Hyderabad. In Pune, online payment is affected by about 5% of its total population and between 6-7% of Kolkata, 2.4% of Ahemdabad, 2.2% of Lucknow and about 2% of Indore. It also found that 73% of online payers access the Internet from their homes, while 79% do it from their office, 36% access it from cyber cafes, 7% from a friend’s place and 14% from the mobile phone, points out ASSOCHAM analysis. 75% of cell phone owners choose online medium for payment of their bills. 73% owners of landline telephones also opt for this medium for bill payment. 70% pay credit card bills online while 60% pay electricity bills online. 45% pay insurance premium through online, 42% pay Internet access bills with this medium while 29% pay for their magazine subscriptions online. 54% cited convenience as the most important that induced them into paying bills online. 35% cited time saving as they could pay bills without having to stand in line at a counter or even a bill payment centre. On average, customer saved 80 hours a year; paying bills online also reduced paperwork and was an easier way to manage bills. 5% were attracted to online bill payment because they could pay multiple bills at the same time on the same site or on different site. 46% of online bill payers are between the age of 26-35, followed by 22% in the age 18-25 group. 20% are in the 36-45 age group, 11% in the 40-60 bracket and 2% in the 61+ age bracket. 83% online bill payers are male and 17% are female. 43% are unmarried, 14% married with no kids and 43% are married with kids. By occupation, online bill payers 3% are students while 6% are supervisors/officers. 64% are executives (including junior, middle and senior levels). 4% are businessmen/ industrialist, 1% are shop owners and 2% are housewives. 99% of online bill payers use the Internet for e-mails; 82% use search engines; 81% use it for surfing, 68% look up news online; 20% look up news on the mobile; 80% use it for online banking, 57% use it for online shopping; 33% trade stocks online, 28% participate in online bidding. “Netizens will increasingly adopt online bill payment for factors such as convenience, control, trust, privacy, and improved record-keeping; another plus factor is that they can depend on customer service for recourse,” said
Dhoot. |
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Illegal mining to be checked
Gurgaon, February 14 According to the orders of deputy commissioner Rakesh Gupta, the sector supervisors have been appointed for six months from February 15, 2008 to August 14, 2008. The assistant registrar, Cooperative Society, Gurgaon, will be the sector supervisor for ‘nakas’ set up at village Naurangpur, Bandhwari and Raisina near Hariahera during the first fortnight of every month. During the second fortnight, GM DIC will be sector supervisor for this area. The deputy commissioner has directed the sector supervisors to ensure compliance of the orders of Supreme Court regarding closure of illegal mining in Aravalli region by conducting checking in the areas. He said that the sector supervisors would enter the checking report in the register at the checkpost in their areas and send a weekly report to the deputy commissioner and the SDM. These sector supervisors will associate with the officers of police, mining, forest and pollution control board for checking illegal mining. In addition to the sector supervisors concerned, sub-divisional magistrate and tehsildar have been made overall supervisory officer for their respective jurisdiction who would ensure the implementation of the action plan to check illegal mining. The action plan for curbing the illegal mining in Gurgaon district was prepared after the apex court’s order banning mining activities in Aravallis. The state government approved this plan on April 14, 2005. As per the directions of the state government, supervisory officers were to be deputed at various ‘nakas’ erected to check illegal mining. Accordingly, supervisory officers were appointed by the district administration for effective implementation of the action plan for six months from June 7, 2007 to December 31, 2007. Now that period has expired so the district administration has issued fresh orders appointing sector supervisors on ‘nakas’ to check illegal mining for another six months. |
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Fighting terrorism
Gurgaon, February 14 These views were expressed by the director general, National Security Guard, J K Dutt while addressing a gathering at the seminar on ‘Fighting Terror-an Integrated Approach’. The seminar is being held at National Bomb Data Centre (NBDC) of the National Security Guard (NSG) at Manesar on Thursday. He said that the targets of terrorism are no longer restricted to the security establishment and soldiers, but transcend to inter-state and international borders. He said that the common man is as much a target as it provides political mileage and international attention to the terrorist groups. Dutt stated that more than 40 countries have introduced the courses on anti-terrorism which clearly depicts their seriousness to deal with the threat of terrorism. When mediapersons asked Dutt how effective would be the policy of anti-hijacking which the government of India is formulating, he said that they have no role to play in the policy formulation of GOI. While talking about the trends of bomb explosion in India, he revealed that now the remote control is being used for doing explosions, which adversely affects the public and the security personnel. He said the latest techniques were being used for bomb explosion by the terrorists so as to create panic among the public. Dutt remarked that it is only with prompt action and dependable intelligence, we could defeat the advantages of surprise that the terrorists enjoy. The annual journal Bombshell that was released in this seminar, depicted that the country witnessed a total number of 376 bomb blasts during the last year, thus registering a significant increase in comparison to the figures of 307 incidents during 2006. He said that in the states of Andhara Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Manipur, Orissa and West Bengal, there was marked increase in the use of improvised explosive device (IED) for explosions. Whereas in the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Chattisgarh which were among the worst affected states in 2006, a marginal drop in IED explosions was witnessed in 2007. During this period, the two states namely Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh and the Union Territory of Chandigarh again remained free from IED. |
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Business picks up
New Delhi, February 14 “I have no clue why they celebrate Valentine’s Day. But, I am happy as long as they do. My business blossoms on this day,” said Ashok Tiwari, flower vendor from a locality near Delhi University. A rose stem that otherwise would cost Rs 5, shoots up to Rs 25 and even Rs 50 on Valentine’s Day. “Roses are mostly in demand. But, lately people have started buying flowers like — gladioli and carnations. Girls love pink carnations,” said Rajesh, another flower vendor from the same area. Roses are so much in demand that vice-chancellor’s garden has to be protected by guards. “These roses are award-winning. We will exhibit them at the university’s flower show to be held next week,” said the gardener. “We keep an eye on them fearing the youth, who pluck them on this day.” Flower business is not the only thing that is flourishing on the occasion. With mobile phone revolution in the country, lovers are using the hi-tech mode to express their love and telecom companies are very happy. With special value-added services like — e-dating, e-greeting, e-roses, quiz constant and love calculators, the telecom war has taken a whole new aspect. Service providers have put full charge on calls and SMSs on Valentine’s Day. “IDEA cellular aims to add excitement to the lives of its subscribers. The introduction of love-based themes and content is an initiative,” said Pradeep Shrivastava, chief marketing officer, IDEA. TATA too is in the race. “At TATA teleservices, we constantly endeavour to provide valuable and exclusive offerings to our customers,” said Vineet Bhatia, chief operating officer, Delhi circle, TATA teleservices. Corporates, big and small, are likely to earn Rs 3,000 crore during the love festival. |
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Cool response at JNU
New Delhi, February 14 “I have never seen anything exceptional happening in the university on Valentine’s Day, so far,” said Sandeep, president, JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) from All India Students’ Association. “Besides I don’t see any point in celebrating love on one particular day.” “Valentine’s Day has become purely commercialised and market-oriented,” said Dhananjay, former president, JNUSU, from Students’ Federation of India. “But we want to make it clear that we are not against anybody celebrating it, as well.” Though few hostels have organised some small-scale parties on the occasion, the rest of the university looks unaffected. “We oppose the kind of cultural policing that reactionary organisations like VHP do but that does not stop us from calling it corporatization of human emotions,” said Samar Pandey from Progressive Students’ Union. Amit from Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad is not very excited about the day for different reasons. “One should not run after the western culture. We are not saying no to love; Lord Krishna was a lover himself so maybe we could celebrate love on Janmashtami here,” he said. “However, JNU is different from Delhi University. Here no one really cares about the day anyway.” Meanwhile, there are some students who do not see anything wrong in enjoying the day. “There is nothing wrong in celebrating Valentine’s Day. Though, we have our own ‘no nuisance’ ways of celebrating it in JNU,” said Simmy Joseph from National Students’ Union of India. The chief security officer of JNU MS Cheema confirms that the university remains silent on Valentine’s Day. “I have not seen anything going wrong in the university on Valentine’s Day,” he said. |
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Mock attacks at metro stations
New Delhi, February 14 It is for the first time that a mock exercise on disaster management was conducted in the Capital. Monitored by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the mock drills were carried out simultaneously at Rajiv Chowk, Chawri Bazar, Rithala and Shastri Park metro stations. “Metro is a soft target. We decided to carry out the mock drill here to review the efficacy of agencies like — metro, district administration and police in such a situation,” said NDMA vice-chairman NC Vij. Four persons wearing CISF uniform carried out a mock attack at Rajiv Chowk metro station. They opened fire and threw grenades at the platform. They also partially switch off the lights at the platform. “The idea of the exercise was to assess how the DMRC and the CISF personnel responded, how efficiently the police cordoned off the area and how fast the administration was in setting the incident command post,” said NDMA member JK Sinha. In the Chawri Bazar exercise, members of the recently established national disaster response force participated in a mock drill. They had set up a decontamination center. NDMA officials were present at the metro stations and monitored the movement of the metro officials during crisis. |
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Erring gas agencies in trouble
New Delhi, February 14 A few days ago, the department had raided 140 gas agencies in the Capital. They did not supply LPG cylinders to domestic users on time. Four persons were caught for the black market of cylinders. FIRs have been registered against Usha Gas Service, Banaras Gas Service both in DDA market, Mata Sundari Road, Central Delhi; Chandra Indane Gas Gowdon Tahirpur, North-East Delhi and Fair Deal Gas Agency, DDA Market, East of Kailash, for supplying illegal domestic LPG to restaurants, hotels and sweet shops. Government prohibits restaurants, hotels and sweet shops from using domestic gas cylinders. They should take commercial connections. According to sources, agency owners earn hefty profit by selling domestic cylinders to commercial establishments. Control rate of domestic cylinder is Rs 295 while that of commercial one is Rs 1,100. In black market, domestic cylinder is available at Rs 500 to Rs 600. The department also conducted raids at restaurants and sweet shops in various areas of the Capital. Thirty-four restaurants and sweet shops were caught using domestic LPG cylinders. FIRs have been registered against them, sources said.
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S Korean, Italian students visit DPS
New Delhi, February 14 The other delegation comprised two teachers and 15 students from Isaac Newton Higher Secondary School, Rome, Italy, who were at DPS from February 2 to 11. While the Korean Exchange Programme has been going on in the school for the last three years, it was the first time that students from Italy came to the school. The foreign delegates stayed in Indian homes, interacting directly with students of the school and getting an inside view of Indian customs and way of life. The delegates did a lot of sight-seeing visiting the National Museum, Dilli Haat and even the Surajkund Mela. A road trip to Agra to visit the Taj Mahal along with other heritage sites such as the Sikandra Fort, and a bit of shopping were some of the items on agenda. Both the delegations visited the renowned Akshardham Temple. A special cultural evening was organized in their honour on the school premises where the Korean and Italian delegates showcased their cultural ethos through a scintillating dance and music performance. The Korean delegation visited the Rashtrapati Bhavan, while the Italian delegation went to India Gate and undertook brief trips to Agra and Jaipur to witness the local Indian culture. It was a wonderful opportunity for both delegates and students alike to interact and learn about the rich cultural ethos of their lands and the start of many new friendships among the students of these three countries. Students from DPS R.K.Puram will be going on a reciprocal visit to these countries later this year. |
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Students demand hostel rooms
New Delhi, February 14 “These are priority one students. They should not wait for so long. It is a sheer negligence on the part of the DSW,” said Anirban, councillor, School of Languages and Cultural Studies. “From this demonstration we demand immediate allotment of rooms to P1 students.” The university constructed new hostels in 2004, which solved the hostel crisis to a major extent. However, this year again the students are facing much delay in the allotment of rooms. “We know out of our experience that they have vacant rooms. So, why should it take so long for them to be allotted to the students in need,” said Divya Cherian, councillor, School of Social Sciences. “This is a reflection of the administration’s insensitivity towards the students of the university.” “By January last year, students from P1 had already been assigned their rooms and by the beginning of February, allotments started for P2 and P3,” said Anirban. “This year they have not even taken up the P1 students.” |
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Book studies monuments
New Delhi, February 14 The book throws insight into Delhi’s monuments. The book describes the historic ruins of Delhi and the rich cultural past of India. Khushwant Singh said, “A book, as this, was sorely needed for. While there are many books about known monuments, there are very few that deal exclusively with the lesser-known monuments.” He said that despite having lived in Delhi all his life, there were several monuments that he had never seen or read about. He also stressed on the need to be aware and be equipped to deal with the rich architectural heritage of the city. “You can love Delhi or hate it,” he said, “but you cannot be indifferent to it.” |
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Assamese trader’s murderer held
New Delhi, February 14 Pranab Saikia was found dead on February 8 at his nephew’s residence in Sheikh Sarai Phase-I near Malviya Nagar. The belongings of the deceased, which include two gold rings, a Maruti Zen car, one suitcase, one laptop bag and Iranian Dinars have been recovered from Satender’s possession. It was found that Anshuman Dass, a bank employee, had taken the said flat on rent. He lived there with his wife. But for the last 5-6 days, he was admitted to the Max Hospital, Malviya Nagar. His wife was with him in the hospital for his care. Pranab Saikia, originally from Jurahat in Assam, was Dass’ maternal uncle. He dealt in food processing business and was in Delhi for the last 10 days for some business purpose. During investigation, it was found that the deceased used to visit Delhi frequently. He was fond of making friends. The call details of his mobile phone revealed that he had recently come in contact with some persons and had called them at his nephew’s flat. Later, it was found that one of his recent friends had left Delhi and had gone to Rai Bareilly. It was found that Satender, son of Ram Lakhan Singh, had recently visited his village. But he returned soon. It also found that Satender Singh had rented a room in Baljeet Nagar near West Patel Nagar, from where he was later apprehended. Satender Singh admitted to his recent friendship with the deceased. He had visited his flat two days prior to the incident. He inspected the flat and the belongings of the deceased. He, then, planned to rob the flat. He had visited the flat with the deceased on the date of incident with the motive to rob the deceased. He mixed intoxicants in his snacks and liquor, while taking meal. When the deceased became unconscious, he eloped with the cash and other belongings of the deceased. Satender Singh was also arrested in a robbery case in 2007. |
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Three get life for abduction, murder
Noida, February 14 The judge of additional district court No. 5, Alok Kumar Trivedi, also slapped fine of Rs 10,000 each on the three convicts. In all 13 witnesses had been examined on January 30, 2008 in the case in which Ram Veer of Jarcha village had been kidnapped and murdered on January 17, 1996. According to prosecution, Ram Veer had been taken from his home by one Bhopal Singh of the same village. Ram Veer’s brother Om Veer had seen him going outside the village with Hari Om and Shri Om of Kasmawad village in Ghaziabad. When Ram Veer did not return home even the next day, Ram Veer filed a kidnapping report against Shri Om, Hari Om and Bhopal Singh. On February 24, 1996, a body was found in a well in forests of Nurpur which was identified as that of Ram Veer. Ram Veer, according to asstt. district advocate, Jagdish Naggar had jointly bought a tractor along with Shri Om and Hari Om. The tractor, which Ram Veer used to keep with him, later became a bone of contention and cause of Ram Veer’s abduction. Ram Veer had earlier also lodged an attempt-to- kidnap report in Jarcha police station on July 11, 1995. All three accused were awarded life imprisonment under IPC 302 and a fine of Rs 10,000 each. In case of non-payment of fine, the sentence will extend to six months further, the verdict of the court said. Five year imprisonment under Section 201 and a fine of Rs 5,000 was also awarded for concealing the facts. |
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Gang of snatchers smashed
New Delhi, February 14 The Special Staff of East District under the supervision of inspector Rajesh Kumar was making efforts to nab the gang active in East District for the last couple of months. Several traps were laid and sources were deployed to apprehend this gang. A gang of snatchers active in East Delhi was identified and information developed. The team got specific information about this gang yesterday and a raid was conducted near NH-24. Two persons, Vikas Kumar and Pradeep Kumar were apprehended and a black Pulsar motorcycle without number plate was seized. Eight mobile phones were also recovered from them. The accused revealed that they have committed many snatchings in the area of East and North East District and used to select their targets at isolated places and snatch mobiles, chains, ladies purse and bags. About eight mobile phones worth more than a lakh of rupees have also been recovered from their possession. |
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Drunk driver kills labourer
New Delhi, February 14 The accident occurred at around 2.20 am when Davinder, 22, who was driving the car bearing a VIP registration number, lost control and rammed it onto labourers engaged in some work on the roadside. Davinder and his four friends in the car tried to flee after the accident, but people overpowered them. The two labourers, identified as Azaruddin and Imran, were rushed to a hospital, but doctors declared Azaruddin brought dead. Imran was stated to be battling for his life. The police has arrested Davinder and has detained his friends. All were whisked to a government hospital for a medical check-up. “We have registered a case of rash and negligent driving and culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the driver,” said a police official.
— IANS |
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Mukhi decries rise in petrol prices
New Delhi, February 14 He said that prices of all commodities would shoot as goods are carried in diesel or petrol driven vehicles. The rate of inflation will also rise. BJP demanded that instead of increasing the prices of petrol and diesel, the government should reduce the rate of excise and VAT so that price of essential commodities may be contained. |
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Arms banned in social functions
Gurgaon, February 14 Though casualties due to accidents caused by air-shooting in marriage functions have often been reported from various parts of the state, the district magistrate Rakesh Gupta has taken a lead in issuing orders on banning the use of licensed weapons in functions. Gupta has invoked powers of district magistrate under Section 144 of CrPC 1973 for restricting the use of weapons in marriages and other social functions. |
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Garden Tourism fest begins
New Delhi, February 14 The theme of this year’s garden festival is Indian Ethnic Garden. The festival aims at creating awareness about environment conservation and promotion of floriculture amongst citizens of Delhi. It also welcomes the arrival of spring season. Garden of Five Senses was developed by Delhi Tourism. It was conceptualised as an answer to the city’s need for space — for people to
socialise, unwind and relax. Such space adds atmosphere and life to the city. |
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Clear sky greets Delhiites
New Delhi, February 14 The minimum temperature marginally rose by 0.2 degrees. It was recorded at 6.4 ° Celsius today, four notches below normal. The maximum temperature was recorded at 20 ° Celsius. According to the national center for medium range weather forecasting, chilly conditions are due to the westerly and northwesterly winds sweeping northern India for the past three days. |
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Restore broken church: DMC
New Delhi, February 14 |
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