New Delhi, April 23
Delhi grain merchants along with the Dal and Besan Miller Association and nine other associations have have decided to stop buying fresh stocks from outside. At a meeting here yesterday ,they alleged that the state government stopped them to keep stocks by continuing raids on food grain traders in the Capital.

They said the cost of grains, dal, besan and sugar in the Capital was less than Madhya Pardesh and Rajasthan.

“Prices of wheat and various dals ,including chana have increased by about Re 1 yesterday. Due to constant raids Delhi grain merchants have almost finished off their stocks and have not ordered fresh stocks,” said Ashok Gupta, president, Dal and Besan Miller Association.

O.P.Jain , president ,Delhi Grain Merchant Association, has expressed concern at continuing raids on food grain traders despite prices being under check. “No trader wants to stockpile eatables particularly food grains as these items depend on crop season,” he said.

“For expected scarcity and sharp increase of prices of food grain products in Delhi in coming days, we cannot be blamed as the government does not want us to keep food stocks. More over the prices are also increasing in the food grain production states,” Gupta added

“We are going by the whims of the government and cannot be blamed for future price hike or problems. We want to stay away from any controversy and blame games,” Ashok Gupta said.

New Delhi, April 23
Lakhs of tonnes of foodgrain and edible oil have been recovered as the department has launched a campaign to raid godowns, mills and big shops in various areas of the national Capital. The campaign was launched after the price spiral, sources said.

Since the raids have been conducted, food and other items have come out in the market resulting in the

decrease of their prices. Rate of mustard oil had gone up to Rs 80 per kg in retail market. It has now come down to Rs 66. Pulses which were sold at Rs 50 per kg are now available at Rs 36 in open market.

Refuting the charges of foodgrain association and millers against the government, an official of the food supplies department, Delhi government, said FIRs were registered against only those traders who had stored the goods in excess. The department has maintained a file of those traders whose shops and godowns were raided but cases were not registered against them as food items were not recovered in excess.

The official said the allegation that the department has adopted arm-twisting methods against the traders has no basis. The officials conducted raids when they receive complaints of hoarding. They raided NEFED godown on Lawrence Road also. The department has so far lodged 46 cases against the traders and more cases are likely to be registered, the official added.

He said the traders are affiliated to one or other political parties. The issue is totally politicised. Sources said that raids conducted by the Delhi Agriculture Marketing Food Board are illegal as the board has no power to take action against hoarders. This can be done only by the weight and measure department. 

Ghaziabad, April 23
Over 2.25 lakh photographs in Ghaziabad’s voter list being readied for the coming Lok Sabha elections have been found to be wrong. Most of these photographs are such that it is difficult to identify them.

Besides, the list also includes over 37,000 people who are long dead.

This was stated by an election commission member and observer, Sanjay Bhus Reddy, who had come to examine the voters’ list in Ghaziabad.

He said the election commission was serious in making an updated voters’ list. As such, it is keeping an eye on the administration’s work.

At Morta village, Reddy examined the voters’ list and compared it with the voters of booth Nos. 164, 165 and 166. About a dozen voters had got the voters’ identity cards, but their names were not traceable in voters’ list. Some names were found to be repeated while others had wrong photographs.

Reddy ordered the administration that the voters’ list be displayed at voting centres so that voters could see their names in the lists.

The election commission is doing its best to ensure that correct photo identity cards of all voters are ready before the next Lok Sabha elections, Reddy said.

Ghaziabad has a total of 25,44,677 voters while the district administration has photographs of only 17,18,657 voters in its list. Names of only

17,03,635 voters have been verified by booth level officers. Out of these, some 3,11,032 voters have since changed their addresses though their photographs are available with the district authorities. About 5,000 photographs cannot be recognized at all.

State commission member Sanjay Bhus Reddy advised the officials to seek cooperation of RWAs for correcting and updating the voters’ list.

New Delhi, April 23
Thanks largely to the intervention of Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, the situation on day four of the trial run of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand Hospital was much better today.

According to motorists, it took much less time today to clear the 5.3-km stretch as traffic policemen and marshals ensured that vehicles adhered to their lanes. Also, the drivers in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, who for years have been used to having their own way on the roads, were now gradually seeing the advantages of lane driving.

The first two days of the trial run which began on Sunday saw total chaos on the stretch inviting criticism from all sections.

Senior police and Delhi government officials, including the transport commissioner, monitoring the situation said that all-out efforts were being made to remove the impediments in the smooth flow of the traffic. The Delhi Chief Minister had yesterday convened an urgent meeting of all the stakeholders and told them in clear terms that the success of this corridor was essential for introducing similar service in other parts of the sprawling metropolis. The other projects have been put on hold temporarily till the trial run on this particular corridor is completed.

Commuters said that with the absence of the Blueline buses and introduction of low-floored DTC buses on this section had also contributed to the improvement in the situation. The drivers of these buses are more disciplined and the buses have additional capacity to carry passengers.

The situation on this stretch will be monitored daily and the reports will again be reviewed in a meeting with the Chief Minister.

Meanwhile, the Delhi traffic policemen deployed on the stretch continued to challan recalcitrant two-wheeler riders who jumped lanes to get ahead on the stretch.

The operators of the Blueline buses have in the meantime protested against the ban on them for plying on the corridor. They said that they were specially trained for plying on the stretch and still the Delhi government had suddenly banned them as if they were the only ones responsible for the traffic mess during the trial run. They urged the government to lift the ban and allow them to operate normally.

New Delhi, April 23
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is heating up with protest demonstrations despite the end semester exams drawing close. As soon as the School of Social Sciences (SSS) and School of International Studies (SIS) hunger strikes were called off, The JNUSU started another hunger strike that marked its ninth day on Wednesday.

Students of the School of Language Literature and Culture Studies (SLL&CS) demonstrated in front of their school building to press their demands. “Our agitation has reached a positive culmination with the school administration providing us some concrete assurances,” said Anirban, councillor, SLL&CS. “An academic council meeting has been scheduled for April 30 to discuss the report of the equivalence committee for recognising Madrasa certificates”.

The administration has also assured necessary help to the student community while they plan to constitute a placement cell in the school. The union has also conveyed to the authorities that it would not tolerate any seat cut in the CIL. On this the administration has taken up the responsibility to recruit faculty members during the vacations after the end of this semester.

“We have told the school administration not to adopt any delaying tactics in meeting the assurances,” said Anirban. “Any such move by the administration will compel us to intensify our struggle.”

Meanwhile, the JNUSU representatives also had a meeting with the university authorities to discuss some of their central demands. According to the union office -bearers, no substantial conclusion has come out of it and the fast would continue. 

New Delhi, April 23
Delhi University (DU) will not conduct any entrance test for admission to English honours from the current academic session. Admission to the course will entirely depend on marks scored by the applicants.

Dean of colleges Nayanjot Lahiri announced this today. He said, “We have sent an advisory to colleges not to conduct any entrance test for English honours from this year. It is an interim measure, before the decision to hold a common entrance test is taken by the university.”

The decision was taken due to students’ protests that took place earlier.

However, of 45 colleges that offer the course, 18 are thinking to hold an entrance test.

Teachers feel that there is no co-relation between the level of proficiency in English and the marks obtained in the subject, especially by CBSE students.

They feel that many colleges keep the cut-offs relatively low, as they want students with an aptitude for the subject. Once marks become the criterion, many deserving students who have not scored well but have a good grasp of the language may lose out.

Many colleges are conscious of the fact that students from humanities may be at a disadvantage as their peers from science and commerce streams score more in English.

New Delhi, April 23
Large consumer market coupled with easy availability of skilled labour has attracted foreign investments in the Capital. There are 1,29,000 industrial units in the state. Over 1,440,000 workers are employed in the manufacturing sector.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said this at the inauguration of three-day job fair ‘Sopan 2008’ at ITI Pusa today.

Department of Training & Technical Education (TTE), Delhi has organised the fair.

Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) mainly produce skilled workforce. The three-day job fair would provide an opportunity to over 3,000 ITI prodigies to work with 54 national or multi-national companies, Dikshit said.

She announced that the TTE would start job-oriented courses in ITIs. The courses would cater to the needs of industries.

Sheila Dikshit said that the first ever job-fair would offer an insight into technical manpower requirements of industries.

It would not only help passouts in looking for jobs, but would also help companies to make substantial savings.

She said that skilled workers play pivotal role in the economic growth of a nation.

“In order to modernise and develop vocational education and training institutes, the department of TTE has taken initiatives to improve training programmes,” she added.

New Delhi, April 23
“In order to have long-term sustainability, businesses have to be socially responsible. Corporates are increasingly realizing the significance of socially responsible business practices not only for mere charity sake but also for their own sustainability and growth. As a result a large number of companies are evolving institutional mechanism to promote CSR,” commented Dr. Rakesh Mohan Joshi, chairperson, management development programme ,at a two-day management development programme on corporate social responsibility organized by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT).

The programme was organized by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) in collaboration with the Business and Community Foundation (BCF) at the institute’s campus and it provided a unique platform for social scientists, industry implementers and companies involved in CSR activities to come together and explore new dimensions in this growing area. The IIFT threw together both seasoned hands in industry as well as academics in the programme.

The two-day programme commenced on April 22 and concluded on Wednesday with the valedictory address by chairman, Steel Authority of India, S K Roongta, who happens to be an alumni of the IIFT.

Director, IIFT, K.T. Chacko, stressed on the need to facilitate, design, develop and deliver a contemporary CSR course which takes into account developmental priorities, instrumental in deepening the CSR movement in the country which is an area that is just developing and needs to come into focus.

Discussions were held on wide-ranging issues that come under CSR like historical evolution of philanthropy and foundations, Tata Index, corporate sustainability protocol, carbon credits, Kyoto protocol, extractive industries and mining issues, including the human aspect of the caving in of numerous mining sights and their negative impact on workers futures. An entire section was set aside for the National Survey CSR Human Rights and perspectives on the supply chain. Exchanges were also held on poverty allieviation, poverty and corporate accountability and disability business cases.

The programme was attended by senior level managers, chief managers, president’s heading corporates. The participants were from organizations like MSPL Limited, Health and Family Welfare, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, Ballarpur Industries Limited (BILT), Lafarge, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, Ericsson India Pvt. Limited, ONGC, Planning Commission, HSBC, Helpage India,  NTPC Limited, Grant Thornton, National Foundation of India, CMS, Research House,  Maruti Suzuki ,SAIL, Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited etc. 

New Delhi, April 23
Over 40 teachers from 20 different schools from across the country deliberated upon the role of robotics in school education and discussed the means of encouraging and supporting grassroots robotics activity amongst students in schools.

The All India Teachers’ Conference on Robotics in Education was organised at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in the capital on Tuesday. The conference was called by the LEGO Education, providers of complete robotics solutions and Techtronics India Limited.

“Techtronics is training teachers and helping in development of robotic clubs in schools in the country. LEGO Education provides tools specifically designed for schools that come complete with teacher resources, training and course manuals,” said Sudhanshu Sharma, managing director, Techtronics.

At the robotic clubs, students can learn uses of robots and experiment with various types of machines, from sound-sensing robots to robots that may even play football. “The use of robotics in education is aimed at helping children discover the science of circuits and by exploring the nuts and bolts of robots, how sensors are used in robots. This encourages children to tune their skills into building simple circuits and eventually, their own mini robots,” said Sudhanshu.

“Robotics is an exciting field that integrates engineering, mechanics, electronics and programming. It encourages students to learn while building and constructing. It develops creativity in students and brings out their potential,” said Apurva Kalia, vice-president, Cadence Design Systems.

During the day-long conference several presentations were made,including one by Apurva Kalia on ‘How to set up a robotics club in your school?’ Sudipto Mukherjee of IIT, Delhi, did a presentation on ‘Motor and Gear Ratio’. A presentation on ‘LEGO Science Concepts with Robot Demo’ was made by Amity International School, Noida, and another on ‘Usability of Website using robotics’ by the Apeejay School, Noida.

New Delhi, April 23
Criticising the government for providing packaged food to children below six years of age in several states, doctors and activists on Tuesday demanded that hot cooked meals could only save kids from malnourishment.

Experts said that under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), of which ‘anganwadi’ (ay care centre in which poor children get free food) is a part, the government provides food worth Rs 2 per child per day.

“With such a low allocation, packaged food cannot provide required nutrition. We should go for hot cooked food from local products,” said Arun Gupta, member, International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN).

Quoting the latest National Family Health Survey, Devika Singh of Mobile Creche, an NGO said that over the last eight years malnutrition level in India has improved by just one per cent.

“Our children need nutrition, care and support. Instead of going for a public private participation (PPP) to give packaged food, we need to involve more local people in anganwadis,” Singh told reporters.

Activists said that states like Uttar Pradseh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat were giving packaged food in anganwadis and children’s health condition there is very poor.

“Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Puducherry are doing well because they are providing hot cooked meals every day,” said Sameer Garg, an activist from Chhattisgarh.

“Instead of giving packaged food twice or thrice a month to kids below six years of age, it is better to give them dal and roti,” said Garg, who is appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the ICDS programme implementation in Chhattisgarh. — IANS

New Delhi, April 23
Fitness freaks who plan to sweat it out in the hot Indian summer would do well to wear skin-friendly fabrics like cotton, say experts.

“Cotton is a natural fibre and has less allergic tendencies. It is best suited for people who have sensitive skin and hence are prone to skin irritation,” said Hema Pant, dermatologist, Kaya Skin Clinic, a skincare solutions centre.

Even though cotton is widely available in India and has its advantages, other materials like synthetic, dri-fit and polyester have gradually built a market for themselves.

Ashish Dhir, India representative for the Cotton Council International, said dri-fit is made of polyester treated with moisture absorbing technology.

“Polyester is not known for managing moisture very well and so it is mostly treated to provide moisture absorbing capabilities. Today, it is used over cotton as it is cheaper as a raw material and also lightweight,” he said.

Pointing out the disadvantages of such fabrics, Pant said, “These materials trap sweat. This is not wise for people who have sweat-related problems like dermatitis and prickly heat, as excessive perspiration can aggravate the problem”.

Whether it is for competitions or for regular workout routines, athletes and fitness freaks need clothing that keeps them cool and dry.

“Dri-fit material is essentially a poly-micro-fibre which does not cling to the skin and enables it to breathe better. The fabric is designed to soak sweat which leads to better moisture management,” Sanjay Gangopadhyay, marketing director, Nike, a sportswear brand, told IANS.

Gangopadhyay further explained that the apparel made from this fabric is extremely lightweight so that the person wearing it does not carry additional weight.

Fashion designer Charu Parashar said that other fabrics are preferred over cotton due to the perfect fit offered by them. “While gymming, people look for fabrics which fit them well. Lycra as a fabric gives stretchability, which is loved by health freaks,”she said. — IANS

New Delhi, April 23
Women from the trading community will present bangles to the government here on May 6 for its inability to take action against large corporate houses for hoarding of essential commodities.

The decision to demonstrate was taken at the meeting of the core committee of the Confederation of the All India Traders (CAIT) which met here today. The meeting said that instead of taking action against the large corporate houses, the trading community was being made the scapegoat .

CAIT national president B.C. Bhartia and secretary general Praveen Khandelwal while calling for a complete ban on future trading in commodities said that the Abhijit Sen committee report on commodity market is likely to be a sponsored report of the government and demanded that a new committee be constituted by the government which should include representatives from trade and farmers communities to look in to the issues relating to commodity market.

New Delhi, April 23
Shanti Sharma, classical singer and exponent of the Kirana Gharana, died after she fell from the second storey of her house at Malviya Nagar in South Delhi. She was 52 and is survived by her husband and a son. Her husband, Dinesh Sharma, said that she had jumped to her death.

“I am not in a position to say whether she was depressed. I rated her very highly among the singers of her age group. My teenaged son is taking it very badly,” he said.

Contrary to the reports that she was disturbed after her daughter’s death in an accident a few years ago, Shobha Deepak Singh, a close friend and director of the Bharatiya Kala Kendra, said that Shanti was in a fine frame of mind. 

Ghaziabad, April 23
The mutilated body of a seven-year-old boy who had suddenly gone missing in Amir Nagar village under Titawi police station in Muzzafar Nagar has been recovered from fields.

The boy was mercilessly done to death, with two nails driven into his head. The condition of the body indicated that some tantric had killed him to make a sacrificial offering. The police has sent the body for autopsy while SP City Ashok Kumar said only after receiving the enquiry report, he could say something.

Some women, including wife of Liaqat in village Amir Nagar, had gone to fields of a farmer for cutting wheat crop. Some children had also followed the group of women. Liaqat’s second son, Sabed told his mother that he was going home.

By the evening women returned home, but Sabed had not reached yet.

Villagers looked for him everywhere but Sabed was not found. A missing report was filed by his grandfather Abdul Aziz in police station at night.

On Tuesday some villagers found the boy’s mutilated body with nails driven into his head and his intestines had been taken out.

Some skin had also been pulled away after breaking his leg and arm. Both his eyes had also been gouged.

On seeing the condition of the body, some villagers became agitated and opposed the police’s efforts to send it for autopsy. SP City Ashok Kumar somehow pacified the villagers.

Most villagers, including Gram Panchayat pradhan Kokku said the boy had been killed for ‘tantar mantar’.

Ghaziabad, April 23
Nine members of an inter-state gang of criminals were arrested with their weapons by the Loni police who also claimed to have seized goods worth Rs 10 lakh from them. The police recovered the vehicle used in the loot with a large number of jeans, jackets and other dress items.

Three revolvers, 12 bullets, six daggers were also recovered from the criminals.

SSP Deepak Rattan has announced an award of Rs 10,000 to the police team. The criminals have confessed to the stabbing of a Delhi cop and killing of a young man.

SP City Vijay Bhushan said Tronica City police post in-charge Upendra Sharma was on a night patrol when he was informed by an informer that nine dreaded criminals were about to commit a big crime.

On seeing the police, criminals tried to escape by firing at the cops, but the police party was able to arrest them.