Mumbai, June 15
Refusing extradited gangster Abu Salem's plea to be recalled, the Supreme Court of Portugal has held that if any country violates the terms of extradition, it may render it difficult to entertain such pleas in future and it may even reject new requests by such nations.

Hearing an application filed by Salem in which the gangster sought to be recalled claiming that the extradition conditions are being violated, Portugal's apex court said that his claims are yet to be ascertained.

It, however, gave a clear warning to India that future requests will not be entertained easily if Salem's claim of violation of the conditions is found to be true.

Stating that Portugal can ask for relevant information from the State (India) concerned regarding the plea, the court observed, "The Portuguese State may always invoke the disrespect that will have occurred in future requests for extradition submitted by the same country, thereby rendering it difficult or even rejecting new extraditions."

Salem, who was extradited to India in November 2005 along with companion Monica Bedi, had made allegations of violation of human rights by Indian authorities in his plea to the apex court in Portugal and also claimed that he was accused of crimes that were excluded from the conditions of extradition.

Salem's charges were framed by the Portugal court and the same was a part of the extradition condition, Salem's lawyer Rashid Ansari told PTI.

"Salem was brought to India for undergoing trial of nine cases but the authorities here have further investigated the cases after the extradition and framed additional charges, which is in violation of the treaty," he said adding that Salem's confessional statement was also recorded under duress after he was extradited.

If the consequent conclusion is that the extradited person is being "proceeded against, tried, detained or subject to any restriction of freedom for a fact or conviction... different from those in the request" then the authorisation for extradition granted will be terminated.

This will mean that the presence of the appellant in territory of the Indian Union will have to be considered "illegal", the order says.

While the Supreme Court of Portugal has considered Salem's application partly, they have refused to recall him to Portugal, as sought by him.

Salem is being tried for the 1993 bomb blasts case, murders of builder Pradip Jain and Ajit Diwani, secretary of actor Manisha Koirala, apart from three extortion cases in Delhi and three fake passport cases in Lucknow, Bhopal and Hyderabad. — PTI

New Delhi, June 15
Faced with threat from naxalites in the eastern parts of the country, the ministry of home affairs is considering having a separate and independent intelligence wing of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

The demand is almost two years old and at one point of time it was expected that the CRPF would have its own intelligence wing, but things slowed down. Finally, the proposal was turned down by the finance ministry citing lack of funds.

The CRPF, which is the world’s largest paramilitary force, is presently headed by V.K. Joshi, whose career has been mostly spent in central intelligence agencies. Sources said the importance of good intelligence gathering could not be undermined since the CRPF was dealing with counter-insurgency.

A few months ago the paramilitary force has again proposed setting up a separate intelligence wing. The proposal has been mooted again after the CRPF decided to set up a special armed force to counter left-wing extremism amid reports that Naxalites would be stepping up their activities across the eastern corridor.

In May, the CRPF based in Jammu and Kashmir killed six Jaish-e-Mohammed militants after it received intelligence information from its own personnel. The paramilitary force has selected a few people from every battalion to gather intelligence locally.

Last month, two of its jawans were killed while they were gathering information about militants in Pulwama district. With such a history to it, the CRPF has once again pressed for having institutionalised intelligence gathering. The MHA is also favourably inclined to the demand.

Counterinsurgency operations of the CRPF have been affected by irregular communication and intelligence sharing between the force and various affected states, an official said, adding that this was the need of the hour.

New Delhi, June 15
The government’s flagship Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Programme is costing the Food Corporation of India (FCI) dear.

Feeding 35 states and UTs with food stocks required for MDM operations in the country has left the corporation poorer by several crores, forcing it recently to prevent some states from lifting foodgrains until bills were cleared.

Later, it allowed lifting only till June whereas the human resource development ministry had requested for foodgrain lifting up to September.

The problem continues, with the HRD ministry yet to clear whopping arrears of Rs 346.71 crore pending towards the FCI. This was the exact amount of arrears pending until May 30.

Of this, close to Rs 322 crore is due against cost of FCI’s bills for feeding the MDM programme in primary schools from April 2007 to March 2008; the rest, about 23 crore, is the amount of arrears pending for supplying foodgrains to states for upper primary category schools.

Information obtained by The Tribune reveals that out of about 210 FCI bills in the upper primary school category, the HRD ministry has cleared only 21 as yet.

The rest have either not been paid or not yet been received from the states concerned, which are supposed to confirm the amount of FCI bill by checking the exact status of food grain lifted.

The status of clearance of dues is even worse in primary school category, where 54 per cent of the FCI’s bills have either not been paid by the HRD ministry or not yet been received from states. Here, about 226 out of the 420 outstanding bills of FCI for the year 2007-2008 remain to be paid.

No wonder the situation recently reached a flashpoint, with the agriculture ministry admonishing HRD ministry to make its own arrangements for lifting foodgrains.

The HRD ministry, however, controlled the damage by proposing to increase the risk-covering revolving fund to Rs 300 crore, lest MDM programme suffers. To further ease the crisis, the ministry has now ordered clearance of arrears on priority, without waiting for confirmation from states, which are yet to send one.

Enquiries, however, reveal that in every case of unpaid bills, states may not be necessarily at fault. In the primary section, as many as 169 out of about 420 bills for the year have not been paid by the ministry.

Out of total bills, confirmation is yet to be received in 58 cases. Ministry sources attribute delay in bill payment to delay in confirmation by states.

As regards performance in terms of bill payment -- Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir are the worst, with none of the bills for 12 months having been paid. Chattisgarh is no better with bills for 11 months pending.

Northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Mizoram come next, with 10 months dues pending. Bihar and Maharashtra’s pending dues are for 9 and 7 months, respectively, while Daman and Diu is also poor with FCI bills of 10 months pending.

The only state with a clear account with the FCI is Rajasthan, which has paid all the bills. Major contributors to arrears, which the HRD ministry has to clear, are Maharashtra with Rs 6376 lakh; Bihar with Rs 5293 lakh; Chattisgarh with Rs 4073 lakh; Jharkhand with Rs 3677 lakh and Kerala with Rs 1757 lakh.

Dehra Dun, June 15
After successfully scaling the Mount Black Peak, known as Kala Nag on June 9, a team of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) led by Major Bharat Bhusan and Capt S.P.S. Chauhan, including two officers, one JCO, 10 NCOs and 10 Gentleman Cadets is back.

The team prepared a helipad in Ruinsara Tal. It also cleared the Bandarpoonch Glacier to make it more environmental- friendly.

The Mount Black Peak is at an altitude of 20,954 feet in the Har-Ki-Dun Valley
at the confluence of Jamdar and the Banderpoonch Glacier and forms part of the
lower Himalayas.

The area of expedition has a great mythological importance as the route is believed to be “the gateway to heaven” taken by the Pandavas.

New Delhi, June 15
If one thought that the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which is accepted as the country’s top defence research body, was an “all-men’s club”, it is not so.

Women are also in the forefront and are working on sensitive projects connected to the country’s security and long-term strategic needs.

Hundreds of women hold key posts at the organisation. These scientists, all achievers in the true sense, are behind India’s indigenous programme of developing missiles, aircraft, tanks and weapons.

Like their male colleagues at the DRDO, they are also shy from being identified in public. “No photos please,” said the DRDO top brass as The Tribune approached for photos of the women to highlight their work.

A careful look into the DRDO and its associated labs located across the country revealed that about 15 per cent of 7,000-odd scientists are women.

A series of successes have been achieved by the women scientists and its is not just a case of one-odd woman doing well, said a DRDO official.

Rohini Devi, a senior scientist, has pioneered the design and development of rubber seals for the surface-to-air missile system for the missiles that the country often fires and tests.

She is presently the technology director, High Temperature Composites Centre, Hyderabad.

Pilots who test-fly the LCA interact with another woman, Meera Kaushal, for the generation of engine power settings for various mid-air manoeuvres of the LCA.

Kaushal has developed a simulated mission endurance test schedule for testing the engine.

If this is not enough, the DRDO’s field lab at Leh is headed by a woman - Dr Shashi Bala Singh. At present, she is the only woman heading a DRDO laboratory.

Dr Shashi Bala Singh has rich experience in the field of high altitude human physiology which is very critical when our soldiers fight in places like Kargil, Dras or the Siachen glacier.

She has contributed in the development of antioxidants to improve high-altitude induced impairment. She is the recipient of the Bharat Nirman Talented Ladies Award-1995.

Renuka Chitrakar is based at the Defence Electronics Research Lab and has configured a high sensitivity and high probability interception of signals.

She made a contribution in the development of ground-based signal intelligence gathering surveillance system for the Air Force.

Jhumur Lahiri has worked on the development of a process monitoring technique. The Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment also has two women - S. Savitri and Swarna Ramesh - at senior positions.

The Gas turbine research establishment also has a woman - Anuradha Kumar - at a senior position. The scientific analysis group, the Defence Bioengineering and Electromedical Laboratory are among other critical areas where women are working.

New Delhi, June 15
Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar is known to be passionate about strengthening panchayati raj institutions.

As the first panchayati raj minister in independent India, he has been making strenuous efforts to persuade state governments to devolve power down to the village panchayat.

Unfortunately, his passsion and persuasive skills have failed to work their magic in his own home state Tamil Nadu.

And compulsions of coalition politics have ensured that the otherwise voluble minister is unable to even complain about it in public.

Recognising that it is the mandate of state governments to undertake the process of devolution, Aiyar has often maintained that he has considerable responsibility but no authority.

A report on the status of panchayati raj institutions in the country, prepared by the Institute of Rural Management, Anand, for Aiyar’s ministry, has revealed that though the Tamil Nadu government has issued orders devolving functions to panchayats, these local bodies have limited powers.

The recommendations of a 1999 task force on activity mapping are yet to be implemented while another report, prepared by a high-level committee headed by state rural development minister and Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s son Stalin, is gathering dust.

According to IRMA, panchayats in Tamil Nadu have limited freedom to appoint their own staff while officers of concerned departments who work in panchayats are treated as government officials. They do not come under the purview of local bodies.

To be fair, the situation in some of the Congress-ruled states is no better. In Haryana, for instance, zila parishads are kept as advisory bodies, only minor functions are devolved to the gram panchayats while concerned departments continue to have complete control of development work at district, taluk and village level.

“Even where devolution has taken place on paper, it is not effective since the panchayats have little awareness of their roles,” the IRMA report points out.

While Himachal Pradesh has devolved all 29 functions to the gram panchayats, the general perception is that rural local bodies are essentially agencies of the state government and they have little or no autonomous responsibility for any function.

The IRMA report says no functionaries have been brought under the panchayats and though control of buildings have been handed over to these local bodies, they have no control over the funds for their maintenance.

Punjab has shown mixed results in this regard. The government had approved devolving functions of seven departments five years ago but the authority to
initiate disciplinary action against functionaries continues to vest with the
concerned department.

On the positive side, rural dispensaries and all fresh recruitment for these have been entrusted to the zila parishads.

Similarly, primary schools have also been transferred to these bodies and a transparent and merit-based system has been evolved for recruitment of teachers who are treated as zila parishad employees.

Chennai, June 15
The alliance between the DMK and the PMK, constituents of the Congress-led UPA at the Centre, is on the brink of collapse as both the parties have taken extreme stands on continuing their relationship.

While the DMK leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had said the party’s high-level committee meeting would be convened here this week to review the ties between the two parties, the PMK founder S Ramadoss charged Karunanidhi with branding his party as “violent”.

Though both parties have been at loggerheads for quite some time, the last straw for the DMK came from an audio CD, reportedly containing a speech of PMK veteran J Guru, a close confidant of Ramadoss, threatening union minister A Raja and DMK legislator S Sivasankar, both hailing from Perambalur district, which is a Vanniyar (most backward caste) heartland and also the vote bank of the PMK.

Ramadoss said, “It was the CD containing Guru’s speech made at the height of tension between the DMK and the PMK in January 2008, when the police, at the instigation of Raja, foisted cases against PMK volunteers and arrested them on Pongal festival.

The cases pertained to a charge of intimidation in collecting funds for a party conference from a road contractor. Ramadoss had said the contractor did not make any complaint and Raja “made a highway department engineer and a relative of Sivasankar lodge the complaint.”

Guru had succeeded Ramadoss as Vaniyar Sangam president and was instrumental in collecting funds for the PMK and for the educational trust floated by it.

Ramadoss had remarked that Karunanidhi, “intolerant” of his criticisms, had taken the extreme step of “reviewing the relationship”. The DMK has not snapped ties on its own with any party at the state level in the last five decades and it will be the first time if it decides to dump the PMK.

The PMK, with 17 MLAs in the state Assembly, has been extending outside support to the Karunanidhi ministry as the DMK, with 96 MLAs, lacked majority in the 234-member house.

Even if the PMK decides to withdraw its support, there will not be any threat to the DMK ministry as the Congress, will continue their support and enable the ministry to cross the magic number of 118. — PTI

Guwahati, June 15
The long-standing border dispute with China has not come in the way of rapid growth of the trade relations between the two countries, with the volume of bilateral trade projected to touch $ 60 billion by the year 2010.

This was stated by minister of external affairs Pranab Mukherjee who was here to inaugurate a branch secretariat of the ministry today.

He said even as efforts were on to find out a mutually acceptable solution to the border dispute with China through a dialogue, the country’s foreign policy had facilitated continuous growth in commercial relations.

“Notwithstanding the border dispute, we have made good progress in respect of increase in volume of bilateral trade with China. The revised estimate of the bilateral trade volume is expected to hit $ 60 billion- mark by the year 2010”, said Pranab.

The minister said India firmly believed that patience, dialogue and understanding were the way to resolve issues with neighbours. “We can decide what type of relationship we have with our neighbours, not what type of government they will have,” he said.

He added that the new branch secretariat of the ministry in Guwahati, the fifth in the country after Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Chennai, would set the stage for India’s bilateral trade with ASEAN nations.

On the occasion, union minister of panchayati raj and development Mani Shankar Aiyar said: “Development process in the north-east suffered a setback once the transit facility through the erstwhile East Pakistan (Bangladesh) was totally snapped after the 1965 war. Improvement in relations with Bangladesh is critical to economic development of the region.”

He opined that accessibility through Myanmar had to be worked out through Indian investment in infrastructure sector in that country, which would help connect the north-east with its natural hinterland in south-east Asia.

Hardwar, June 15
With an eye on the next parliamentary elections in the country, the Vishav Hindu Parishad (VHP) has decided to launch a drive to get at least 370 MPs, who support the Ram Janam Bhoomi issue, elected to the Lok Sabha.

At a high-level religious meeting here, the VHP and Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti (ABSS) appealed to all like-minded parties and people to join their hands on issues like ‘Ram Janam Bhoomi’ and ‘Ram Setu’.

Addressing the first day of the three-day-long meeting from June 14 to 16, VHP international president Ashok Singhal said that there is a need to unite the community and its leadership on the issue of ‘Ram Temple’.

The temple could only be possible if they supported like-minded candidates in the Lok Sabha elections and at least 270 Ram Temple supporting MPs reach Parliament, he added.

Meanwhile, VHP general secretary Parveen Bhai Togadiya in his inimitable style said that if VHP and its supporting parties achieve its target of 370, no power would stop us from constructing the temple at Ayodhya.

More than 50 saints from Sadhu Samaj and from different 'gadhis' (religious chairs) across the country participated in the meeting.

The issues of saving the Ram Setu at Rameshwaram, increase in incidents of militancy and saving the Ganga from pollution will be discussed in the next session.

Kanchi Shankaracharya, Swami Jayendra, Jyotipeeth Shankaracharya and Vasudevanand Saraswati who led the Sadhu Samaj said that the decision of '370 MPs' was taken jointly by the VHP and the saints and further added that the Ram Temple issue was one issue that united Hindus all over the world.

Dehra Dun, June 15
Due to increasing fragmentation in and around Chila-Motichur corridor of Rajaji National Park, the movement of elephants is being hindered and authorities are in the process of shifting villages and an Army ammunition dump from the area.

The park is surrounded by Chila on the eastern side and Motichur on the western, has a railway crossing inside it and a national highway running through it.

Kadgaon village is positioned in the centre of the corridor and along with the army area covers nearly 155 acres of land.

Due to this, the movement of elephants in the corridor is being severely impeded and their menace in the cities has increased.

Recently, the forest department in Haridwar shot an elephant after it killed two people and injured seven.

On March 16, 2007, the Supreme Court had ordered the shifting of those villages that are hindering the path of elephants.

According to the director of Rajaji National Park, G.S. Pandey, around 32 families are residing in Kadgaon village.

“We are in the process of shifting the villagers and will position them in Rishikesh. Army officials have also given their consent for shifting the ammunition dump to Rishikesh,” he said.

Permission for construction of an overpass on the national highway and railway track has also obtained by the Rajaji National Park authorities. 

New Delhi, June 15
While the civil nuclear deal still hangs in balance, the BJP today criticised the Communist Party of India (CPI) for its remarks that the deal would make India an US outpost against China.

It, however, refrained from endorsing the deal in its present form. BJP president Rajnath Singh in a statement here said, “The BJP expresses concern over the remarks made by CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan that the nuclear deal is an attempt to make India an US outpost against China. The CPI seems to have forgotten that it is not a Chinese but an Indian political party.”

Bardhan made these remarks yesterday at a function to commemorate the 80th birth anniversary of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara.

“Ever since the idea of the nuclear deal has been mooted, the Left has consistently indicated that they are more concerned about protecting China’s interests than our own national and strategic interests,” Singh said.

The BJP is opposed to the deal in its present form, arguing that India cannot give away its right to conduct tests as envisaged in the deal.

“Such statements and public posturing could jeopardize our long-term and strategic relations with the US and China,” Singh said.

“The Left is trying to politicise the issue in an attempt to regain their political relevance and mass support,” he said.

New Delhi, June 15
The Supreme Court will hear tomorrow a petition seeking disqualification of 18 Rajasthan MLAs for allegedly making inflammatory statements during the Gujjar agitation last year, breaching their oath as legislators and ministers.

The Vacation Bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and G.S. Singhvi would hear the petition filed by Kashi Purohit against an order of single Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, which had earlier dismissed the plea.

The high court had dismissed the petition saying the Governor was not expected to refer the matter for opinion to the Election Commission where no specific disqualification had been clearly made out as given in Article 191 of the Constitution or the Representation of People’s Act.

Purohit had initially moved the then Governor, who had on July 13, 2007 dismissed the plea which had sought disqualification of as many as 18 MLAs of various parties, including BJP, Congress, BSP and some independents besides three Cabinet and one state minister.

The petition has alleged that “18 MLAs had openly supported the Gujjar-Meena caste war during the Gujjar reservation stir that set Rajasthan ablaze, disrupted trade, and industry and also disrupted communal harmony in the adjoining states.”

The Gujjars are right now in the midst of an agitation to secure ST status for themselves. Gujjar leaders are engaged in talks with the Rajasthan government over the issue. — PTI

New Delhi, June 15
Seeking to link the Left opposition to the “strategic alliance” with the US to the cause of Palestine, CPM leader Prakash Karat today said that India would have
to be “disentangled” from the trilateral axis with the US and Israel to help the Palestinian struggle.

Slamming the UPA government for “continuing to pursue strategic ties with Israel”, Karat said the common minimum programme deliberately did not mention any strategic alliance with the US or the Jewish state as the Congress said it would break with policies of the previous BJP-led government.

“But the UPA did not fulfill what it said on paper,” the CPM general secretary said while addressing a meeting to remember 60 years of ‘Nakba’ - the creation of Israel and displacement of Palestinians from their homeland.

“The strategic alliances with the US and Israel are inter-connected. To support Palestinian cause, it is important to disentangle India from this Indo-Israel-US matrix... we are fighting for this for the last four years and it will go on,”Karat said.

He added that there would be “no compromise” on this. “India has been drawn to US strategic designs... We will have to rededicate ourselves to the struggle for changing the course of India’s current foreign policy,” Karat said.

Referring to the military ties with Israel, he cited the Barak missile deal and said it was one example of how such alliance can “subvert” India’s security establishment.

Karat also flayed the launch of an Israeli spy satellite from an ISRO vehicle, saying this might help Israel if it wants to carry out missile strikes on Iranian nuclear establishments. — PTI

New Delhi, June 15
Set to make forays in use of space applications, the Indian Army will take a leaf out of US forces’ experience to train its officers in optimising the effective use of space-based resources to meet its operational requirements.

A week after India announced setting up of an integrated cell to coordinate all military operations based on space assets, the Army’s Directorate of Perspective Planning (DOPP) will organise a training programme tomorrow for officers to make them understand the tricks of the trade, Army sources said today.

To be inaugurated by the Chief of Army Staff, Gen Deepak Kapoor, the seminar would also look into the role of space-based applications in recent conflicts around the world.

“In particular, the use of space-based assets by the US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq would be debated. Army officers would learn the practices adopted by the US forces in utilising space applications to counter enemies in its battles in Iraq and Afghanistan,” sources said.

The meet, to be organised in association with the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), would witness officers discussing and imbibing “space-based application used by militaries of the space-faring nations,” sources said.

“It is imperative that Indian Army, being the largest user of space, exploits space-based resources optimally to meet its operational requirements,” a note prepared by the DOPP to organise a day-long training for officers, said.

“The training will focus on improving Army officers’ awareness and understanding about defence applications of space,” sources said.

The meet would witness lectures from experts in the filed of space-based military applications, and a particular emphasis would be made to apprise Army officers on issues related to space security.

India’s defence establishment was shaken up after China’s capabilities to shoot down satellites was demonstrated in January 2007. Efforts are now on to put in place counter measures to ward off the anti-satellite (ASAT) threats.

The Integrated Space Cell under the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) Headquarters would now be the prime mover of India’s aerospace defence applications.

The space cell would act as a single window between the armed forces, the Department of Space and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to work out measures to protect India’s space-based assets.

While India remains committed to non-weaponisation of space, emergence of offensive counter space systems and anti-satellite weaponry posed new threats, defence minister A.K. Antony had said in his address to the IDS commanders conference held last week.

Among the armed forces, the Indian Air Force (IAF) was the only force to have a separate cell for space operations in 2006 headed by an Air Vice Marshal-rank officer designated as the Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Operations-Space) at the
IAF headquarters.

The IAF move was seen as a precursor to the formation of an Aerospace Command that the IAF had been pushing for.

Officially, though, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) had not capped the Aerospace Command idea, but had been claiming that it was progressing towards having a tri-services formation, instead of an IAF-specific one.

“Keeping in view the potential for growth in space-related applications, there is an urgent need to enhance awareness among Services officers regarding military-specific space issues,” Army sources said, justifying their effort to train their officers. — PTI

Lucknow, June 15
Be it a terrorist attack, mass tragedy or police verification, this bank can be of great use for security agencies and doctors.

Combining biometric, anthropology and information technology together, Asia’s first human DNA bank has been set up in the Biotech Park of the state capital.

The unique bank stores all information of a person, including fingerprints and other vital details collected from four drops of blood in a sim card, which is transferred to a smart card to be read through special readers.

“The information will be stored in the bank for 50 years and is of great help in ascertaining identity of a person and providing medical aid,” chief executive officer, Biotech Park, P K Seth said.

“This is Asia’s first and world’s second bank having the DNA identification system (DIS) and has been established in the Biotech Park under the public private partnership with IQRA Biotech Services,” Seth said, adding that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is so far the only agency that could boast of a DNA bank.

Citing major uses of the card, he said that it could provide details about an unconscious person during an accident, identify bodies during mass tragedy and help tracking lost children besides, it could also be used at important establishments such as airport, immigration counters and high-risk zones.

The card would have general information, anthropological and medical information, biometrics DNA and fingerprint details of a person, and rare personal and confidential information would also be stored in it, Seth said.

Realising the utility of the bank, the governments of Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir and Tamil Nadu have shown keen interest in the project and expressed their desire to establish such banks in their states, an official of the firm said.

“After serial blasts in Jaipur, the Rajasthan government wants to establish the DNA bank and prepare smart cards for chief minister Vasundhara Raje’s office, secretariat and district magistrate officer for security reasons,” he said.

“Similarly, the Tamil Nadu government has asked family and social welfare department to check viability of the project, while the Jammu and Kashmir government is also keen to start the bank soon,” the official claimed.

The bank is offering membership to interested persons at Rs 640 for 50 years in Lucknow. Once someone becomes a member of the bank, he will get a microchip-based DNA card containing vital information.

With the help of this card, all information about a person will be accessible on the click of a mouse. — PTI

Mumbai, June 15
A 43-year-old policeman committed suicide by shooting himself inside the guard room of the high-security headquarters of the Shiv Sena here today.

Sub-Inspector Pradip Kisan Mane shot himself with a service revolver at the Sena Bhavan in Dadar in central Mumbai at 1240 hours, the police said.

“There were many security men posted at Sena Bhavan at that time. Mane left the group, went inside the guard room alone and ended his life by shooting himself with his service revolver,” a senior police official said.

The police suspects indebtedness could have led Mane, who joined work after a 40-day sick leave yesterday, to end his life, he said, adding that no suicide note had been found.

Mane was suspended from service twice earlier and had borrowed around Rs 4 lakh from his friends for the renovation of his house in central Mumbai’s Byculla, he said.

“During his sick leave, Mane had taken psychiatric treatment in Pune with the help of his brother who is a practising doctor,” he said.

Mane’s is the second suicide by an on-duty policeman in the last week. Constable Mohan Deshmukh,42, had committed suicide while being on guard duty outside a nationalised bank’s branch last Tuesday. — PTI

The conferment of the title and the launch of the programme for the SAARC
goodwill ambassadors is likely to take place during the 15th SAARC Summit to be held in Colombo.

Guwahati, June 15
The Army today shot dead four militants of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), according to a spokesman.

The shootout took place at Balijan in Sivasagar district of eastern Assam, Army spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia informed.

The troops recovered one AK- 56 assault rifle, one M-16 rifle, one grenade- launcher, three grenades, one .12 bore gun, and assorted ammunition from them.

BRIEFLY

Lightning claims six lives in UP
LUCKNOW: Six persons were killed in separate incidents of lightning in Uttar Pradesh where heavy rains lashed the state capital on Sunday. While two persons were struck by lightning in Govindpur area of Sonbhadra, a teenager was killed in Ballia, two in Deoria and one in Gonda district on Saturday, official sources said. The MET department forecasted heavy rain in some parts of the state. — PTI

Environment film festival in Tripura
AGARTALA: In a bid to sensitise students and the common masses, the Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies (CMS) and the film society in Tripura, Cine Delve, have announced to host a three-day environment film festival here during the last week of September. CMS festival manager Ashwini Sinha said that the festival would propagate the message of maintaining the earth green. — UNI

Maoists gun down CPM leader
MIDNAPORE: Suspected Maoists on Sunday shot dead a CPM leader in West Bengal’s Paschim Midnapur district, a senior police official said. Biswanath Mandi (35) died on the spot after four motorcycle-borne Maoist cadre shot him from close range in Kodasol village of the district. Mandi was a member of Goaltore zonal committee of the CPM and president of block krishak sabha, CPM’s peasants’ wing. — PTI

Maoists abduct 17 traders, torch truck
RAIPUR: Seventeen traders, including three women, have been abducted by the Maoists in Kanker district of Chhattisgarh. Of the 17 kidnapped on Saturday, three were still untraced, Kanker DSP Praveen Kumar Das said. The Maoists also set ablaze the truck, in which the traders were carrying their grocery goods for the Badgaon weekly market. — PTI

John Abraham dragged in legal tangle
MUMBAI: Bollywood actor John Abraham's legal battle over the ownership of an entire floor in a building in the city has come to the fore with a glass company claiming before the Bombay High Court that it bought the property before him. Abraham purchased the 4,500 sq ft premises in New Prabhadevi's Orbit plaza in 2006 for Rs 11.5 crore. However, one Parekh Glass Company has claimed that it bought the property prior to him and dragged him and Orbit Finance, the owner, to the court. — PTI