New Delhi, June 3
Since the BJP has appropriated Lord Rama, the Congress is now looking to Lord Krishna for inspiration to take on the opposition’s Hindutva mascot, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress managers have zeroed in on the pilgrim city of Dwarka to conduct a two-day chintan shivir on June 7 and 8 as a first step in what is being seen as a long drawn-out battle against the saffron party in general and Modi in particular.

Having been virtually vanquished in its electoral battle in Gujarat by Modi, the grand old party has decided to do some serious soul-searching on how it should go about reviving the party in this western state.

The party has deliberately chosen Dwarka, the former kingdom of Lord Krishna, for this in-house exercise. It was here that Arjuna and Duryodhan came to Krishna for help and it is from this holy city that he set out for the great battle at Kurukshetra to instruct Arjuna and the Pandavas.

Having been relegated to the margins in Gujarat, the Congress will be hoping to meet a “modern-day Krishna” who will come to their aid in their battle against Modi when the party’s Gujarat team sits down to ask fundamental questions like: “How do we counter the BJP”.

To be attended by all Gujarat MPs, legislators, heads of district committees and zila parishads, the two-day session will also focus on another extremely difficult issue: whether the party should go into next year’s Lok Sabha election by attacking Modi or the BJP’s PM-in-waiting L.K.Advani.

Congress insiders said there was a fierce debate in the party on this issue. There is a strong view that its campaign against Modi in the last assembly poll had actually proved counter-productive as it had further strengthened him and provided the chief minister an opportunity to communalise the campaign. In case the party decides to keep its focus on Modi, the proposed meet will identify the issues on which it can take on the hugely-popular chief minister, especially in the urban areas where he enjoys a cult following.

There is a growing realisation in the Congress that the party’s Gujarat unit is in very poor shape and that the organisation needs to be strengthened at the grass-root level if it has to challenge the BJP’s well-oiled machinery.

AICC coordinator for Gujarat, Rajiv Shukla said the chintan shivir will also identify candidates for the Lok Sabha elections and draw up an action plan like the “hisab maango abhiyan” undertaken by the party in Uttar Pradesh. Shukla said it was this chintan shivir which provided the inspiration for a similar brainstorming session being proposed at the national level later this month.

New Delhi, June 3
A day after the law ministry said the state government had to initiate action if it wanted reservation for any community, a high-level meeting of ministers concerned with the issue was held today.

The late evening meeting, held at the residence of union home minister Shivraj Patil, was reportedly attended among others by law minister H.R. Bhardwaj, tribal affairs minister P.R. Kyndiah and social justice minister Meira Kumar.

The letter, asking for a special category reservation, was earlier sent to Prime Minister’s Office. Following the ministers’ meeting tonight, the PMO is expected to send its final reply on the issue to the Rajasthan government by tomorrow.

The home minister is expected to have elicited the views of all the ministries concerned to arrive at a final opinion, which is likely to be along the lines suggested by the law ministry. The law ministry said yesterday there were provisions in the Constitution to provide reservation to communities but in all such cases initiative must come from the state.

The tribal affairs ministry for its part had also been saying the Rajasthan government needs to send a formal representation, complete with ethnographic justification, if it wanted the ST status for Gujjars.

New Delhi, June 3
Even as Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee completes four years in office tomorrow, the veteran parliamentarian today confessed he had derived little job satisfaction from this stint.

Admitting that he looked back on these four years with mixed feelings, Chatterjee told a group of select mediapersons, “I was happier facing the chair than occupying it,” adding that he was agonised by frequent disruption of proceedings and the politics of confrontation being witnessed these days. “We could have done much more together,” he maintained.

Chatterjee, who has spent 38 years as a member of the Lok Sabha, has had a temptuous innings as Speaker. He has been under constant attack from the opposition parties, which have accused him of discriminating against them. In addition, his term was also marked by a run-in with the judiciary and the Election Commission.

Although it is over two years since he was embroiled in the office-of-profit controversy, even today Chatterjee gets quite agitated about the Election Commission’s role in it, which, he said, “was very, very dubious.”

The Speaker is also upset that former President acted on wrong advise and forwarded a complaint against him to the Election Commission directly.

Chatterjee was refering to a complaint filed against him by a Trinamool Congress activist, who had alleged that the Speaker, as head of the Shantiniketan Sriniketan Development Authority, was holding an office of profit.

Chatterjee charged that the Election Commission did not have the courage to ask him for the details and, worse, it took on the role of an investigator and sent the complaint to the state government for verification when the complainant failed to provide any proof. As for the former President, Chatterjee said he had the highest respect for Kalam but insists he was not correctly advised.

Referring to his stormy relationship with the opposition, Chatterjee said he had never denied them an opportunity to raise any issue, pointing out that he had unilaterally taken the initiative for a discussion on Nandigram and also created history when he admitted an adjournment motion against the government in the second session itself.

Appealing to the members to change the course, Chatterjee said, “We should learn from the past mistakes. If something done earlier was bad at that time, then it is bad even now.” His main concern, he added, is the smooth running of the House.

New Delhi, June 3
Indian public sector undertakings that participated at the Berlin air show have reportedly received a good response from delegates of foreign companies. There have been queries that could materialise into future engagements.

Notably, the PSUs were exposed to the foreign market for the first time. The Berlin air show is attended by a niche segment of visitors and India was a partner country for the first time.

Among the PSUs that attended the meeting were Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited (MIDHANI), besides the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

The ISRO display attracted a good response from the market. ISRO had achieved a major success in the past when it launched multiple satellites in one go. The HAL has tied up for manufacturing the Dornier 228 plane in India. The composite India Pavilion covered 1,200 sq metres. Another five private defence industries - TATA group of companies, Larsen and Toubro, Cades, Accord Software & Systems and Saraswati Dynamics - were also at the show. The response to them was also very encouraging.

The SARANG team of the Indian Air Force gave a display of aerobatics with their helicopters. The Air Warriors symphony orchestra also performed.

New Delhi, June 3
The National Housing Bank and HelpAge India today joined hands to facilitate the provision of reverse mortgage to the elderly, who are facing growing financial insecurity in India. The two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to provide reverse mortgage counseling to senior citizens, who own a house and need liquid money.

Demand for reverse mortgage, right now being offered by eight banks including the State Bank of India, has surged since the government clarified in this year’s finance bill that loan under reverse mortgage will not be considered as transfer of capital, thus putting it out of purview of income tax. The NHB-HelpAge MoU seeks to address the growing demand in favour of the scheme.

The idea is to enhance the scheme’s scope; Rs 350 crore worth of reverse mortgage has already been sanctioned, and National Housing Bank is constantly receiving queries. HelpAge will now counsel senior citizens at its 10 information and counseling centres to be made functional at Delhi, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Chennai, Jaipur, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Bhopal. Staff will be trained to provide this service.

The scheme helps senior citizens who are retired and constantly worry about the dwindling amount in their bank accounts. Normal options are to rent the existing house, move to a smaller house or sell the house and invest the proceeds better.

The maximum period for a reverse mortgage loan is 15 years. On the death of the senior citizens availing reverse mortgage or on permanent vacating of the residential property, the loan is repaid with the interest accumulated, by selling off the property or their heirs can repay the loan.

Dehra Dun, June 3
After curtailment of the ‘Kailash Mansarovar’ yatra to Tibet by the Chinese authorities, the Uttarakhand government has decided to popularise ‘Adi Kailash’ Yatra to be held within the Indian territory. China has decided to curtail the Mansarovar yatra by allowing only 10 batches of pilgrims instead of 16 batches. The decision has disappointed a large number of pilgrims, who are ready to trek, which is situated at a height of more than 21,000 feet.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister B.C. Khanduri (retd) had met Union external affairs minister Parnab Mukherjee and requested him to take up the issue of curtailment of the Mansarovar yatra with the Chinese authorities. Efforts are being made to adjust pilgrims of first six batches in the remaining 10 batches.

The pilgrims of both the Kailash Mansarovar and the Adi Kailash have to trek nearly a 100 km from Mangti Nallah to Nabhidang. Pilgrims of Kailash Mansarovar cross over the Lipulekh pass to enter Chinese Tibet, while those going to Adi Kailash turn left within Indian territory to have a glimpse of 'Adi Kailash' and 'OM' Parvat mountains.

The Kumoan Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN) that manages the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra has now turned focus on ‘Adi Kailash’ yatra. KMNV GM (tourism) Ashok Joshi said the ‘Adi Kailash’ yatra is equally challenging and it costs much less.

The ‘Kailash Mansarovar’ yatra costs a single pilgrim Rs 60,000 while a sum of Rs 15,000 per pilgrim is required for Adi Kailash pilgrimage.

The 17 day Adi Kailash pilgrimage, besides taking pilgrims to ‘OM’ Parvat and ‘Adi Kailash’ mountains.

“This year more than 450 pilgrims have applied for ‘Adi Kailash’ Yatra,” said Amit Negi, MD, KMVN.

New Delhi, June 3
Positive signals are emanating from Beijing as external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee reaches Guangzhou on Wednesday on a four-day official visit to China, the first in six years by an Indian foreign minister.

Mukherjee will be inaugurating the new Indian consulate in Guangzhou.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang has been quoted by the Chinese media as saying Beijing viewed Mukherjee’s visit as important. Qin also stated that the two neighbours did not view each other as a threat and underlined the need for a fair, reasonable and acceptable solution to the boundary issue.

“The two sides have reached a consensus that both are neighbours and will not regard each other as a threat," Qin said on the eve of Mukherjee’s visit.

Mukherjee and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi are expected to cover a wide gamut of bilateral relations during their formal talks. However, the focus is expected to be on the boundary issue. The two ministers would also be setting dates for the next round of special representative-level talks on the boundary dispute.

Indications are that the two special representatives - India’s National Security Advisor M. K. Narayanan and Chinese vice foreign minister Dai Bingguo - would be meeting soon, Indian officials here said.

From New Delhi’s point of view, the Kailash Mansaro-var Yatra would figure prominently during the Pranab-Yang talks. The Yatra is currently hanging in balance as China has cancelled first three batches that were originally scheduled to be in China within the first half of June. It is understood that Mukherjee would be taking up the issue and urge the Chinese government to accommodate all batches.

The visit is being considered significant as it does against the backdrop of recent nation-wide protests in India over the Olympics torch relay. It will provide an opportunity to India to reassure Beijing that there is no change in New Delhi’s position that Tibet is an autonomous region of China.

The officials said the two sides would also discuss steps needed to be taken to give an impetus to the implementation of certain decisions taken during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to China to enhance trade and economic cooperation and an accelerate the bilateral relationship in the science and technology field.

New Delhi, June 3
Notwithstanding the Left parties’ strident opposition to the Indo-US nuclear deal, the UPA government is hopeful that the standoff between the two sides on the pact would end soon.

“India has remained isolated from high-technology commerce due to its position on nuclear energy. We hope to resolve this soon,” external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee said in his keynote address on ‘Globalisation, growth and people’ at the 87th annual conference of Assocham here.

Noting that human capital was the most valuable resource for the country, the minister said: “For us, the concept of sustainable development must include needs of our people for health, nutrition and housing so as to provide a life of dignity in a clean, safe and healthy environment to all.”

Mukherjee said India’s focus on evolving a multi-faceted relationship with all strategic regions was an outcome of the significant changes in the world’s political and economic scenario since the early 1990s and the country’s march towards economic liberalisation.

“The process of economic integration is taking place at varying paces, but in the clear direction of a global marketplace. Competition is greater than ever before between companies, nations and regions and we still see discriminatory practices and protectionist tendencies among some developed countries, which do not wish to see development and growth shared equitably. We have to resist such tendencies in every forum that we can,” he said.

Pointing out that India was steadily emerging as an important global player, the minister said the situation devolved certain responsibilities on the country and it needed to support the economic integration process in its neighbourhood and beyond.

“For this, good governance is the key. There is need for greater public private partnership and for the private sector to earnestly take up corporate social responsibility so that benefits of growth reach all segments of the society,” he added.

New Delhi, June 3
Defence minister A.K. Antony today made a strong pitch for self-reliance saying a country like India could not go on depending on one country or the other for its defence requirements, as we have had bitter experiences in the past.

Nations are unwilling to part with strategic defence technologies, or at best willing to provide previous generation tactical systems and that too on unacceptable terms and conditions. In such a scenario, there is a strong need to optimise self-reliance in these areas, said the minister while addressing a meeting of the parliamentary consultative committee on defence here today.

Antony also played the “peacemaker” between the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the end user -- the armed forces. The minister made its clear that both had to work with greater synergy to achieve the goal of self-reliance and minimise our over-dependence on other nations.

The minister was not happy over public spats through the media over various projects being under taken by the DRDO. Speaking at the meeting of the parliamentary consultative committee attached to his ministry here today, he said the DRDO had a “crucial role in providing strategic defence with suitable delivery systems to the nation”.

Antony complimented the DRDO for taking a significant step towards developing ballistic missile defence when in December 2007 an exo-atmospheric interceptor missile killed a hostile missile off the Orissa coast. He said with this India joined an elite club consisting of nations such as the USA, Russia, China and Israel, which possessed this capability. Listing other achievements of the DRDO, Antony said it had also developed tactical systems such as missiles and radars, electronic warfare systems, SONARS, torpedoes, armaments, light combat aircraft Tejas, unmanned aerial vehicle, main battle tank Arjun and BrahMos Missile and launched aircraft upgrading programme.

The defence minister said, “We are now entering a new era - an era in which we are not going to be only a buyer. We have devised the policy of the offset clause, a key element of which is transfer of technology. This will lead to a strong industrial base for the country.”

Taking part in the discussion, the MPs, joined the defence minister in complimenting the DRDO for their dedicated and exemplary service to the nation for the last 50 years. They also made a special mention of the DRDO’s recent string of successes in missile technology. They, however, expressed concern at project delays and quality of some of the products developed by the DRDO over the years.

Dehra Dun, June 3
Though the passing out parade of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) is scheduled for June 7, the police is yet to start a drive to identify illegal Bangladeshi migrants residing in Dehra Dun. The casual approach of the police administration could well be gauged from the fact that the police has also failed to ensure that cyber cafés in the city maintains a data base of Internet users.

It is pertinent to mention here that after the Jaipur serial blasts, intelligence agencies had sounded the Uttarakhand government about the possibility of terror strikes in the state. Subsequently, security was beefed up for the “Char Dham” yatra and directions were issued to identify illegal Bangladeshis residing in Dehra Dun. Instructions were also issued by SSP Amit Kumar Sinha to all cyber café owners in the city to maintain “log in” and “log out” registers properly.

However, inquiries by The Tribune revealed that all police announcements were only on paper. Neither any cyber café was maintaining the data base of Internet users, nor any drive to keep a tab on illegal Bangladeshi migrants was underway.

Notably, the IMA had been receiving threats from terrorists for the past several years. Three years back a Lashkar-e-Taiba member was arrested from Dehra Dun’s Premnagar area, situated near the IMA, by a team of the Delhi Police. In year 2005, interrogation of some militants had revealed that they were planning to attack the IMA. Besides, the police had also recovered a map of the IMA from terrorists killed in police encounters. Furthermore, the security of the IMA also assumes significance in wake of the fact that recently there were reports that SIMI was active in western districts of Uttar Pradesh adjoining Uttarakhand.

According to sources, a considerable number of Bangladeshis reside in the state, who indulge in criminal activities.

SSP Sinha claimed that the police had started a verification drive in all villages surrounding the IMA to identify illegal Bangladeshi migrants. “Records of all cyber cafés have also been summoned”, he claimed, while adding that internal security arrangement of the IMA for the parade was the responsibility of the academy and the police would be taking care of security outside the IMA premises.

He also disclosed that policemen in excess of 500, including companies of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), would be deployed in the state capital for the parade.

New Delhi, June 3
The Parliamentary Committee on Women’s Reservation today had a stormy second meeting, as it began serious deliberations on the contentious issue of 33 per cent reservation for women in the Parliament and the Legislative Assemblies.

The committee started its formal proceedings today, with the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) becoming the first organisation to depose in favour of the Women’s Reservation Bill.

In its seven-point memorandum, the federation stuck to the demand of 33 per cent reservation and said it fully supported the demand on quota within quota and favoured reservation for women, irrespective of the class they belong to. The federation told the committee that the sub-quota issue should not be allowed to stand in the way of passage of women’s reservation Bill. “It is for the committee now to work out modalities of such an arrangement,” Annie Raja, general secretary of the federation today told The Tribune.

On the other controversial issue of seat rotation, the federation favoured rotation, saying it posed no hurdle for women to show interest in the politics or elections.

The contention, however, failed to impress the anti-reservation lobby, with some members opposing rotation, saying it would result in loss of interest in nurturing the constituencies. The federation, however, countered the view, saying it was unconstitutional. The committee members, for their part, loaded the federation with queries on “quota within quota” and seat rotation. “We will submit written replies in a week,” said Raja.

The Left-oriented federation also objected to the provision of scrapping reservation after 15 years. They called for review after 15 years (on the lines of review in case of reservation for the SCs/STs after every 10 years). “A review can assess the level of political empowerment women would have attained after 15 years. We, however, favour continuation of reservation, following the review,” Raja said, adding that the federation has sought changes in objectives of the Bill, which mentions that reservation will help eliminate gender discrimination. “The Bill must add that reservation is equally important for a strong democracy,” feels the federation.

Sources, however, say that most of the anti-women’s reservation MPs downplayed NFIW’s view as “plain literature and oral evidence.” They kept saying that any reservation, apart from the one on social and educational basis, was unconstitutional.

The committed critics of the Bill like RJD’s Devendra Prasad Yadav are learnt to have rejected the federation’s view to treat women as a homogeneous whole in the matter of reservation. They have said all women are not equal in status and can’t therefore have similar reservation, said sources.

Some of the most vocal supporters of the Bill, including Brinda Karat and Najma Heptullah, were absent. The committee will reassemble on July 10 when NIFW is expected to furnish written replies to the questions posed by the committee members.

Kolkata, June 3
The proposed Rs 1000-crore new township plan at Dankuni, 50 km from Kolkata, has been abandoned for the time being since the government decided to reconsider the land acquisition process for the township.

Disclosing this to mediapersons at the Writers Building today, state minister for the CMDA and metropolitan development Ashok Bhattacharyya said they had taken the decision for avoiding any “Singhur and Nandigram-like problem” at Dankuni.

The same policy would be applicable in all new projects elsewhere in the state, he added.

The minister said the government would reconsider the land acquisition for the township at Dankuni and take a consensus of opinion on the issue before taking up the project for implementation.

Though of the total 4,000 acres needed for the new township about 2,000 acres had already been acquired and the process is on to acquire the remaining land, we would be reviewing and reconsidering the process with the involvement of various political parties and the landowners, said the minister.

Incidentally, Mamata Banerjee had already launched an agitation against the land acquisition at Dankuni and accordingly, she held two public meetings at the site. The Congress also recently organised protest demonstration at Dankuni against the township.

The state urban development minister in the presence of Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had signed an agreement with a private company last year for setting up a new township at Dankuni, near Tata Motor’s motor plant site at Singhur.

Roorkee, June 3
With water conservation gaining paramount attention across the globe, the National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) here has come up with a mechanism to estimate the quantum of water required to irrigate a field.

The scientists here believe that with the aid of this mechanism, water requirement to irrigate a field could be ascertained.

The NIH by adopting the concept of soil moisture modelling (SMM) has evolved a process-level model that gives estimation of the irrigation return flow (IRF) from a field at a micro level and from a command area for artificially applied water in an integrated form.

The IRF is a part of artificially applied water that is not consumed by plants and eventually ‘returns’ to an aquifer or surface water body. To estimate the IRF, change of the soil moisture in the unsaturated zone (the zone in which roots of crop and plant lie) for given water intake against the rejected water outflow of the crop is estimated.

The rejected flow from unsaturated zone is the IRF. “Excess water application, over and above plant’s water requirement and soil water detainment, either goes waste if the quantity is more or replenishes groundwater for subsequent uses. However, with the help of the new mechanism, the water need for irrigation could be estimated beforehand, which would help is water conservation,” a NIH scientist said.

The use of optimal quantity of irrigation water for crops will not only save water for irrigation of larger area but will also save money against withdrawal of water and restrict excess water from flowing to the aquifer.

“The IRF is one of the major components, based on which most of the groundwater related and agriculture schemes are developed. Correct application of irrigation water and a pre-decided allocation in the form of the IRF could save a lot of water to go unutilised, besides increasing irrigation efficiency as well,” he said.

Roorkee, June 3
In a bid to meet immediate need for habitable shelters, particularly in the aftermath of a natural disaster, the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) here has developed low-cost instant shelters to cater for developing countries.

The shelters developed for relief and rehabilitation work include triangular frames of uniform size that shape the supporting structure. The protective clothing is made to cater to different climatic conditions and resources.

The expertise for making the shelters had been acquired by western countries a few years ago.However, it was in the year 2004, when the high-cost of procurement of the instant shelters from foreign countries to rehabilitate the Tsunami-hit, led to the need to develop such shelters within the country.

The shelters developed by the CBRI can be transported quickly and efficiently by land or sea to the calamity-hit areas.

“After reaching the site, the shelters can be quickly fitted, using unskilled labour and connected to local power supplies. In addition to being easily handled and transported, they offer high insulation values,” says an CBRI official.

“These shelters are light in weight, easy to transport and install. These require around 15 minutes to be erected and are ready for use,” he added.

CBRI scientists R.K. Garg and S.K. Negi, who had worked upon the project, believe that the agencies involved in relief work can utilise such shelters and transport them to the affected site when required. The shelters are reusable.

Guwahati, June 3
There seems to be no let-up in clashes between rival factions of Naga rebels despite the stern warning issued by Nagaland government and appeals made by various Naga civil society groups to the rebels to show restraint.

In fresh factional killings, a rebel of the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) and his driver were murdered by the cadres of the rival NSCN group in Dimapur yesterday. Nagaland police said a gunman, believed to be from the NSCN-Unification, killed the two persons after abducting them from Kher Mahal area in Dimapur, the main commercial hub of Nagaland bordering Assam.

The police identified the slain NSCN-IM cadre as Lt. Subongnungsang (31), son of Imtimar of Nokpu village, who was staying at Lingrijan. His driver has been identified as Jyoti Nepali, son of Ram Bahadur from Bor Lingri village. The police said the gunmen abducted the NSCN-IM activist along with his driver at around 8:30 am yesterday and brought them to a place called East Block, Burma Camp, before shooting them dead. Police later recovered the bodies, blindfolded with hands tied at the back, and bearing bullet wounds in the heads.

The foot soldiers of NSCN-IM and the rival NSCN (Unification) have defied efforts by their leaders for a patch-up, despite mounting pressure from the civil society groups in Nagaland to stop the killings in which 40 lives have been lost so far. The chairman of the NSCN-IM, Isak Chisi Swu, recently called up S.S. Khaplang, chairman of the rival NSCN-K, which is close to the NSCN-Unification, to work together for restoring peace among warring rebel groups. The two rival Naga rebel leaders spoke over the phone after about two decades, raising hopes for reconciliation among warring factions of the rebel NSCN. However, the grass roots cadres of rival groups continue to clash.

Various Naga civil society organisations, including the influential joint forum of village headmen and chiefs of Naga customary courts, last week made a joint appeal to warring Naga rebel groups to declare a year-long truce and pave the way for reconciliation.

New Delhi, June 3
Veteran Marxist leader Harkishen Singh Surjeet was today discharged from Metro hospital after recovery from multiple organ failure.

Surjeet was admitted to the hospital on May 6 in a semi-conscious state with complaints of high fever and difficulty in breathing, a Metro hospital release said here.

He was improving until May 15 when he suddenly had cardio-respiratory arrest which required cardiac massage, ventilator and other live support systems.

Ninety-two-year-old Marxist leader remained unresponsive and suffered from multiple organ failure. He had convulsions, pneumonia and fluid in lungs, liver and kidney dysfunction and myocadial infarction.

Later on, he developed picture of septicaemia. After extensive treatment, he slowly improved and was taken off the ventilator.

Surjeet has been a patient of Metro hospital for the past seven years and had undergone a surgery for kidney cancer about three years back, the release said.

Dehra Dun, June 3
The Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN) would soon launch toll-free tourist helpline - 1008 - in Uttarakhand.

The services would be launched with the support of BSNL within two months.

In addition, internet facility will be provided to the tourists with the help of National Informatics Centre (NIC).

Recently, a team of 18 GMVN officials assessed the tourist rest houses in the entire state.

According to reports, out of 91 TRH, 35 are non- functional. The GMVN admits that it is due to their negligence that these rest houses are showing no profit.

“It is observed that most of the rest houses are in places that are not frequented much by tourists. There is also a lack of proper facilities to attract tourists. Thus, we have decided to upgrade our services to better tourism,” said chairman of GMVN Umesh Agarwal.

He said just as emergency numbers are there for medical, police and fire services, the number 1008 would help the tourists. “The number 1008 would provide all information regarding tourist spots and act like a guide,” Aggarwal added.

He also admitted that there are no hoardings or tourist maps to cater to tourists.

Therefore, to facilitate tourists and attract them to places other than regular spots, hoardings and kiosks would be installed.

Special consideration would be given to advertisement of tourist places that are less popular.

Steps would also be taken to promote angling and river rafting at various places in the state. To lure tourists, the GMVN would also serve recipes of Uttarakhand.

“Our objective is to promote tourism and to provide tourists with facilities such as internet, toll-free help numbers, wireless connection and even intercom services,” Agarwal added.

He accepted the fact that despite the GMVN having enough resources to upgrade the rest houses, the same has not been done due to lack of an effective strategy. Notably, the net profit of GMVN for 2007-2008 is Rs 2.32 crore.

Meanwhile, GMVN has already identified 50 tourist rest houses that would be upgraded in the first phase and a team would be decided to monitor their working soon.

BRIEFLY

Lieut-Gen Parmar takes over as DGMS
New Delhi: Lieut-Gen Naresh Kumar Parmar has taken over as the Director General Medical Services (DGMS). A graduate of MGM Medical College, Indore, he was commissioned into Army Medical Corps in 1970. He did his diploma in hospital administration from Pune University in 1980 and masters in hospital administration from All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, in 1989. An alumni of National Defence College, the officer was awarded Vir Chakra for act of gallantry during the 1971 Indo Pak War. For his unflinching dedication to the cause of service. he was awarded Vishist Seva Medal in 2004 and Ati Vishist Seva Medal in 2008. — TNS

ASI to protect heritage monuments from quakes
ALLAHABAD: In an effort to save the country's architectural heritage from devastating earthquakes, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has teamed up with premier institutes to make the monuments quake -proof. As a first step, the ASI has taken up coordinated efforts with the IIT-Kanpur and University of Allahabad to work on two medieval period monuments located in Lucknow. — PTI

Meghalaya ex-minister suspended from Cong
SHILLONG: Former Meghalaya home minister and senior Congress leader Robert G Lyngdoh has been suspended from the party for a period of six years. Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president O L Nongtdu suspended Lyngdoh on Monday for his alleged anti-party statement against the party high command. — UNI

Employees’ body hold dharna
ROORKEE: In support of the long-pending demands of employees, the Irrigation Department Employees’ Federation organised a dharna here. The federation urged the authorities to fulfil the demands of the employees and expressed concern over reduction of chances of promotions in the department. — TNS

India Habitat Centre loses case
New Delh: The India Habitat Centre (IHC), an elite cultural complex in the heart of the capital, has lost a case in the Delhi High Court during which it claimed exclusive right over the use of the words ‘Habitat Centre’ in its name. The court declined to grant IHC permission to use the trade mark exclusively and said “the name only signifies a centre providing services in relation with environment and assembly of people for various activities”. Justice Shiv Narayan Dhingra dismissed a suit filed by the Centre seeking an injunction restraining one Sunita Aeren from using the name “Indirapuram Habitat Centre”. — PTI

Father, son killed, assailant lynched
ARA (BIHAR): Enraged over the killing of a father-son duo, villagers lynched the alleged mastermind in this district of Bihar on Tuesday. Ashok Kumar (55) and his son, Yogeshwar Prasad (28), were shot dead while they were outside their house allegedly by Ayodhya Sao and his henchmen at Sripalpur village, SP Sunil Kumar said. The villagers chased Sao and his accomplices and hacked Sao to death, Kumar said. — PTI