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Meghalaya Bypoll
‘Creamy layer’ a hot potato for Andhra
Army plan comes a cropper
Angry Sharief keeps his options open
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Don’t call me yuvraj, it’s insulting, says Rahul
IIM-A not to roll back fee hike
CJI: Contempt of court provision can’t be repealed
3 cops, two Naxals killed in Jharkhand
Central team okays vaccine administration in Tamil Nadu
Buddhadeb: Left had lost faith in UPA govt
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Meghalaya Bypoll
Guwahati, April 26 The Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) has picked one of the most able leaders and former Deputy Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, a sitting MLA from Garo Hills, as its candidate to challenge P.A. Sangma’s 28-year-old daughter and NCP nominee Agatha K. Sangma in May 22 byelection to the Tura Lok Sabha seat. Sangma is considered the second most influential politician in the Garo Hills areas of Meghalaya after P.A. Sangma. After senior Sangma’s exit from the Congress, Sangma emerged as the most powerful Congress leader from Garo hills. The Congress has made it clear that it was in no mood to facilitate smooth sailing for Sangma’s daughter in the Lok Sabha byelection. The Congress is determined to put an end to the dream run of P.A. Sangma, who has ensured election of two of his sons and himself in the last assembly election, besides securing key cabinet berths for one of his sons. Now he is preparing to send his daughter to the Lok Sabha. MPCC president O.L. Nongtdu admitted that the party had to face a tough time in finding a candidate for the byelection as many senior State Congress leaders rejected the offer of candidature “as, with the general election round the corner, it is not worth to be an MP for a few months.”
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‘Creamy layer’ a hot potato for Andhra
Hyderabad, April 26 Fearing political backlash ahead of elections, the government has spiked the creamy layer idea floated by the Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education (APSCHE). A day after the executive meeting of APSCHE decided to delete the creamy layer sections among the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) while implementing reservations in admissions to professional educational institutions, the Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy ordered withdrawal of the proposal. With byelections due in the Telangana region next month and the general elections just a year away, Reddy quickly distanced himself from the politically sensitive move and chided officials for their hasty decision. The creamy layer criterion was to be implemented from this academic year to fill over 2.50 lakh seats in higher educational institutions of the state offering medical, engineering, MBA, MCA and PG courses. The APSCHE wanted the annual income ceiling to be fixed at Rs 4 lakh to determine the creamy layer. This was at variance with the government’s thinking that exclusion of creamy layer from the purview of reservations could harm the interests of the ruling party. As per the orders of the Supreme Court in 2004, the Centre had asked the states to exclude the OBC families with an annual income of more than Rs 2.5 lakh from the ambit of reservation. The state government had constituted a cabinet sub-committee to examine it. Based on the sub-committee’s recommendations, the Backward Classes’ Welfare Department had issued an order in 2006 to implement creamy layer with an annual income limit of Rs 4 lakh. The Congress leadership feels that the party will have to incur the wrath of BCs if creamy layer was applied in reservations. The APSCHE’s decision has stirred a hornet’s nest, leaving many ruling party leaders red-faced. “We have only discussed the proposal. We do not have authority to implement such a policy decision. If the government directs, then we will implement,” the council chairman Prof K. .C. Reddy said. Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh State BC Welfare Association president R. Krishnaiah warned of a massive statewide agitation if the government excluded creamy layer among the OBCs from the purview of reservations.
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Army plan comes a cropper
New Delhi, April 26 A proposal submitted by the DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) for providing light weight systems is awaiting an approval under the defence procurement procedure. It has been more than year since the DRDO submitted the proposal. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence in its report has noted this delay and but has refrained from commenting on it or suggesting anything about it. Rather the Army has requested the DRDO not to undertake any activity till the approval comes through. The DRDO proposal is to equip the soldier with light weight bullet proof jackets, communication sets and clothing. Sources said the Ministry of Defence could be planning to procure some parts of the light weight systems from some country for immediate use. With delays being associated with developing new equipment, this is one of the possibilities. The clothing of the soldier is planned to be light weight. It will reduce the burden the soldier has to carry during counter-insurgency operations and also during war time. The futuristic bullet proof jacket would be waterproofed. This selective use of high-technology modules is expected to enhance the soldiers’ ability to move, find and engage the enemy and conduct effective operations with the optimum utilisation of resources, believe Army officials. Already the University of Pune has developed an ultra lightweight aerogel material that can support nearly five lakh times its own weight. In a couple of years, the infantry soldier is expected to match his western counterparts in kit and uniform with the Army having launched the F-INSAS (Future infantry soldier as a system) project. The Army has drawn the F-INSAS concept based on the lessons gained from conflicts worldwide and intends making the soldier a ‘self-contained fighting machine’. The individual combat system of the future soldier would include weapons, individual protection, netted communications and enhanced human performance aids.
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Angry Sharief keeps his options open
New Delhi, April 26 Sharief arrived here today from Bangalore for a meeting with Sonia Gandhi. He remained non-committal about his future plans and also refused to speculate about the outcome of his talks with the Congress President although he did admit to reporters here that he has many friends in different political parties. The six-time MP and senior leader of the minority community has sent shock waves in the party as his resignation will dent the Congress’s minority support base in next month’s crucial Karnataka assembly elections. Senior party leaders Digvijay Singh and Prithviraj Chavan tried to placate him but to no avail. The party is now hoping the veteran leader’s meeting with the Congress President tomorrow will help resolve the crisis. Sharief, who has been feeling sidelined in the party for the past several years, is known to be upset over the denial of a party ticket to his grandson though he disagrees this is the reason he had sent in his resignation. Stating this is not the real issue, Sharief said: “It is a silly matter, propaganda to belittle me. There are various issues which I cannot discuss with the media.” He also denied he was trying to pressurise the Congress leadership, adding that the state leadership had failed to address the issues and concerns raised by him. As regards the Congress’s prospects in next month’s assembly polls, Sharief said it would depend primarily on the selection of candidates and the party’s campaign strategy. He also admitted that the BSP would make an impact in the forthcoming elections and reminded the Congress leadership that the party lost 30 seats in the last elections as the BSP had succeeded in eroding its Dalit vote base.
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Don’t call me yuvraj, it’s insulting, says Rahul
Kankera (Chhattisgarh), April 26 The 39-year-old Congress scion also took exception to his being projected as the future Prime Minister, saying he supports incumbent Manmohan Singh whom he described as "most capable". "I feel the word 'yuvraj' is insulting. India is a democratic country and this word has no meaning today," Gandhi told reporters here when asked for his comments on calling him 'yuvraj'. His political opponents, specially Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, describes Gandhi as a 'yuvraj' while attacking him. The description of Gandhi as a "yuvraj" of the common man by a Congress member E. M. Sudarsana Natchiappan also sparked off an uproar in the Rajya Sabha on April 21, with the BJP objecting to the use of the term as a blot on democracy.
— PTI
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IIM-A not to roll back fee hike
Ahmedabad, April 26 “The fee hike issue did come up for discussion in the board meeting. The graded system for fees that we have put into effect from this year was presented to the board members,” IIM-A director Sameer Barua told reporters here, adding that there was “no question of roll back of fee hike”. “You have to understand that we have implemented a graded system. Our maximum fee is Rs 5.5 lakh per year in postgraduate programme, but it is also zero for students whose family income is very low,” Barua said. “The average fee, which we will earn from the batch, will be around Rs 4.2 lakhs per student considering the massive financial assistance given by the institute to students coming from lower income group,” he further said. “All the students coming from the OBC quota will get the benefits of the financial subsidy as they come from the income group of below Rs 2.5 lakh due to the exclusion of creamy layer as per the judgement of the Supreme Court,” Barua said.
— PTI
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CJI: Contempt of court provision can’t be repealed
Thiruvananthapuram, April 26 "Who is going to obey court orders, if the provision on contempt of court is removed... the court orders will become a bunch of papers," he said addressing a seminar on relationship between "The Executive, Legislature and Judiciary" here as part of the Kerala Assembly Golden Jubilee celebrations. "No executive officer will obey the court orders if they are not afraid of the provisions of contempt of court," Balakrishnan said. Stating that courts were not afraid of criticism, he emphasised that the provisions were to protect the interest of the people. There can be healthy criticism on the process of courts, but one should not bring down the prestige and power of judiciary. The criticism should not be directed at the institution and against any individual judge. No motivation should be there in the criticism and that type of criticism was no desirable, Balakrishnan said. On complaints on judicial activism and courts passing orders on Public Interest Litigations, Balakrishnan said it was improper to accuse the courts of taking unfair advantage of PIL instrument to further any vested interest. Citing several recent court interventions such as making compulsory the mid-day meal scheme and the case related to CNG buses in Delhi under the PIL provisions, Balakrishnan said judiciary was constrained to take action on issues concerned with citizens of the country.
— PTI
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3 cops, two Naxals killed in Jharkhand
Kolkata, April 26 According to reports reaching the Writers Building from the Birbhum district headquarters, the incident occurred in the morning when a group of Naxalites carrying AK-47 rifles and other firearms raided a police outpost near Dumka, where only a few policemen were on duty at that time. The Naxalites looted the armoury and carried away several rifles and other weapons. But while they were escaping, a contingent of CRPF personnel from the adjoining outpost arrived and intercepted them. Soon a fierce fighting between the Naxalites and the CRPF personnel followed that lasted for over eight hours. Over 1,000 rounds of bullets were fired during the pitched battle, the Jharkhand police reported to the Birbhum district administration. Later, an helicopter was deployed by the Jharkhand police in the combing operation in jungles where the Naxalites had escaped. However, no Naxalite could be arrested.
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Central team okays vaccine administration in Tamil Nadu
Chennai, April 26 The director of public health, Dr Padmanaban, told UNI that the team members, who visited the Katchur and Poornimangadu PHCs, where the victims were given the vaccine, expressed satisfaction over the cold chain system, used to store the vaccines. The expert team, which conducted a detailed study into the system of vaccine administration, was also happy that everything, including the handling of vaccine and procedures adopted for administering the same were perfect, he said.
— UNI
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Buddhadeb: Left had lost faith in UPA govt
Kolkata, April 26 Buddhadeb said this while addressing a rally at Egra in East Midnapore district.
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3 Austrian children to be repatriated Businessman
shot dead 4 held with contraband drugs 5 killed in clash
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