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Yamuna touches danger mark
Waterlogging, traffic jams as rain lashes Delhi
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Ghori Bachhera Mahapanchayat
250 religious leaders flag off ‘save Ganga campaign’
Artscape
IGNOU launches project management course
Dikshit to distribute Radha Raman Awards today
Gang of bike thieves held after encounter
Five held for planning dacoity
Four held with fake visas
at airport
Three held for movie piracy
Two held for making crackers in residential area
Gangster nabbed
Youth rapes minor girl
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Yamuna touches danger mark
New Delhi, August 17 The situation was considerably bad in the Shastri Park, East Delhi area where water entered homes forcing the residents to evacuate. Many people were seen carrying away their valuables through knee-deep water. Officials said that the police and the Delhi Fire Service personnel were on the standby just in case the residents required help in evacuating. Efforts were also being made to pump out the water. Most of the temples located on the banks of the Yamuna, including the one near the Nigambodh Ghat, were also flooded. Officials, however, claimed that there was no need to panic and the water would recede in a couple of days. This is the first time in this season that the level in the Yamuna has risen to touch the danger mark. |
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Waterlogging, traffic jams as rain lashes Delhi
New Delhi, August 17 “There is a possibility of heavy rainfall or thundershowers in the next 24 hours,” the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday afternoon. While many enjoyed the rain which cooled the air, others were unhappy as the rains washed off their weekend plans. No outings, no visiting, no shopping. “All my plans for the evening are shattered with this rain. Maybe, now we will sit at home and settle for tea and snacks,” said Amit, a bank executive. The heavy downpour left the Capital with traffic snarls on waterlogged roads. Long lines of vehicles snailed their way on almost all major roads of the city. The traffic police blamed civic agencies for potholes and insufficient drainage that led to the traffic jams. Waterlogging was reported at ITO, Lakshmi Nagar, Patparganj, Janakpuri, Vasant Kunj, Hauz Khas, Munirka and Daryaganj, among many other places. “Thank God it’s Sunday, otherwise this rain would have again led to very heavy traffic snarls like I faced last week when I reached home after three hours instead of one,” said Smriti Singh, a call centre employee. Remembering the havoc of last week, corporate executive Vineet Jain said, “The situation is better as it is raining in only some parts of the city whereas last week rain had made the traffic crawl on the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway. It took me three hours to reach the India Gate from Gurgaon.” Though the jams caused delays on almost all major arteries in the city, the worst hit areas included Bhogal, Ashram, Mathura Road, Lajpat Nagar to Moolchand flyover, Andrews Ganj, Okhla, Kalkaji, Modi Mill Flyover, Mehrauli Road, Munirka Chowk, Vikas Marg, NH-8, MB Road, MG Road, Aurobindo Marg, Dhaula Kuan and Shankar Road. “The main problem is that the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) does not respond to distress calls of waterlogging and the place is in a mess till the rainwater gets drained out. We are doing our best to provide maximum space for traffic,” said a senior traffic police
official. — IANS |
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Ghori Bachhera Mahapanchayat
Greater Noda, August 17 The district administration and police do not want to take any chances with the call for a Mahapanchayat in Ghori Bachhera village on Monday. The police has barricaded the village at all entry points. There are police pickets at every step and nobody is being allowed into the village. Among those who are expected to attend the Mahapanchayat which would virtually turn into a condolence meeting for those killed or maimed in police action are Gujjar leader, Col Karori Singh Bainsla, farmer leader Mahinder Singh Tikait, Amar Singh and Sachin Pilot. There are explicit orders from the administration that in no case any leader should be able to sneak into the Ghori Bachhera village which has Meanwhile, sisters in the village did not tie Rakhi on the wrist of their brothers on Raksha Bandhan as hardly a house was left in the village which had not borne the brunt of the violence in one way or the other, last Wednesday. The condolence meeting to be held in the village for those killed in bloody clashes, is likely to be turned into a Mahapanchayat. All the roads leading to the village have been sealed. Police and PAC jawans have been deployed at Chitehra on GT Road, Beel, Ajaipur, Makoda, Mathurapur, Kasna, Surajpur entry point to keep a day and night vigil. |
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250 religious leaders flag off ‘save Ganga campaign’
New Delhi, August 17 The campaign, “Awiral Ganga, Nirmal Ganga: From Gangotri to Ganga Sagar”, aims to clean up the river right from its source in the Himalayas to where it drains into the Bay of Bengal at Ganga Sagar in West Bengal by reducing pollution and demanding national heritage status for the river. The agenda of the umbrella organisation Ganga Raksha Manch includes penalising polluters, preventing drainage of industrial and domestic effluents in the river, opposing the proposed Ganga Express Highway by the Uttar Pradesh government, lobbying for the relocation of industries along the river bank, and opposing the further expansion of the Tehri Dam project in Uttarakhand. The 250-member Marg Darshak Mandal, or the advisory committee comprising the religious leaders, will advise the Ganga Raksha Manch on how to make the campaign effective. Senior Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Ashok Singhal and yoga guru Baba Ramdev are at the helm of the committee. As part of the campaign, pressure groups across the country will organise rallies on September 18 and march to the offices of the district collectors and district magistrate to submit charters listing the demands of the Ganga Raksha Manch. Seers like Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of the Art of Living Foundation, Asaram Bapu, Murari Bapu and Pranab Pandya, head of the Global Gayatri Parivar, will observe a token fast for a day on September 18 to protest the unchecked pollution of the river and press for steps for clean Ganga. The Ganga Raksha Manch has constituted a Kar Sevak (workers’) committee, which will mobilise the youth in 550 districts across 28 states and seven union territories to implement the Ganga action plan on the ground in a phased manner. “The campaign will also include cleaning up of the Yamuna river and its tributaries. How can we clean up Ganga without cleaning up the Yamuna first?” VHP leader Ashok Singhal said to IANS when asked if plans included cleaning up of Yamuna river as well. “This is a not a political campaign. The threat posed by the pollution of Ganga cuts across party lines and we want all political parties to join the campaign,” Baba Ramdev told a packed press conference on Sunday at the Pahari Gurudwara in south Delhi, where the spiritual heads congregated to flag off the new Ganga action drive. The Raksha Manch is also protesting further construction of the Tehri Dam. Sounding a note of caution, Ramdev said: “The dam will collapse one of these days and the entire eco-system along the catchment area of the Tehri river, its tributaries and the Ganga will be jeopardised, resulting in a natural disaster.” The Ganga Raksha Manch said the proposed Ganga Express Highway in Uttar Pradesh would take away nearly 155,293 acres of fertile farmland and displace 600 villages along the route. — IANS
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Artscape
New Delhi, August 17 Chosen by the FICA Emerging Artist Award 2007 jury members, the artists include Atul Dodiya, Subodh Gupta, N.S.Harsha, Shilpa Gupta, Annapurna Garimella and Anshuman Dasgupta, who articulate the most exciting emerging trends in contemporary Indian art. The exhibition also features Abhishek Hazra, Baptist Coelho, Chinmoy Pramanick, Dilip Chobisa, Lavanya Mani, Rajesh Ram, Reji Arackal, Sakshi Gupta, Sisir Thapa, and Ved Prakash Gupta. What binds together these young artists is their urgency to respond to the contemporary climate, and to mediate crucial debates. They use historical, textual, spatial and psychological reference points. The energy that develops here is through the tension, the conflicts and contradictions, within and between their works. They are the small- but-vital 10ml; components that are the essential impetus for change. The Foundation for Indian Contemporary Art (FICA), established in January 2006, is a non-profit organization that hopes to broaden the audience for contemporary Indian art, enhance opportunities for artists and establish a continuous dialogue between the arts and the public through education and active participation in public art projects and funding. Annual programming includes the Emerging Artist Award, the Public Art Grant, the Research Fellowship, Art for Children workshops and other discussions/workshops based on various themes vital to Indian contemporary art. Exhibition of paintings
Studio Vasant here is presenting “It’s Fabulous, It’s Mind-blowing”, an exhibition of paintings by some of the prominent contemporary artists from August 14 to 30. The participating artists include Alka Raghuvanshi, Victor Vijay Kumar, Geethika Kekkobad, Sangeeta Murti, Manoj Kumar, Aditi, Ajay Kumar Samir, Bhaskar Sinha, Dilip Chandolia, Indu Tripathi, J.P. Singh, Pankaj Mohan, P.K. Roy, Prince Chand, Rakesh Raj, Upasana Ashish Tripathi, Sheetal Gohil and Baljit Chadha Celebrating Krishna’s values
As part of the Delhi Chinmaya Mission’s prestigious Bhakti Pravah series, dancer Geeta Chandran and her Natya Vriksha Dance Company are presenting a performance celebrating Krishna at the Mission auditorium here on August 22. Through song, dance and joy, the performance seeks to reiterate the eternal values associated with the birth of Krishna: the birth of hope, the promise of the vanquishing of evil and the celebration of the five senses! The performance is based on classical Bharatanatyam. Indo-Swiss Friendship Treaty
Celebrating the successful completion of 60 years of signing the Friendship Treaty between India and Switzerland, the embassy of Switzerland here held a special preview of “Baergliecht–Mountain Lights”, a photo exhibition on specially illuminated peaks of the Swiss Alps by well-known Swiss artists, Helmut Kohli and Christoph Ogi last week. The evening also saw the performance of Ustad Fateh Ali Khan, disciple of late maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan Saheb and Eliane Burki, Alphorn player from Switzerland Eva Music and the Media Network released a new album in their classic series “Kuch Geet Kuch Gazlein” sung by Karan Singh, Rajya Sabha MP and known patron of arts, at a function at the India Islamic Centre here on Sunday. The judicious use of ancient music instruments during the recording has enhanced the melodies in the album. |
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IGNOU launches project management course
New Delhi, August 17 While the Centre for Excellence in Project Management Pvt Ltd would help IGNOU in delivering the course, the Project Management Associates would help it conduct the examination, according to an IGNOU release. Initiated by the school of engineering and technology of IGNOU, the postgraduate certificate in project management has 18 credit units and would be completed in six months. The course would help prepare students and professionals for managing projects besides helping the nation bridge the gap in the knowledge domain, crucial for economic and management ushering in the 21st century. |
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Dikshit to distribute Radha Raman Awards today
New Delhi, August 17 The awards are given to those citizens who have made extraordinary contribution to the city life. The day is also observed as Founder’s Day in all the institutions started by Dada Radha Raman in the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Moshima Kidwai, general secretary of the All India Congress Committee will preside over the ceremony while Abhishek Singhvi will deliver the Radha Raman memorial lecture. Radha Raman, who passed away in June 1982, joined the freedom struggle at the tender age of 14 and remained imprisoned for long periods during the fight for freedom. He was a member of the Delhi congress as well as the Congress National Working Committee. He was also a member of parliament and subsequently became the chief executive councilor of Delhi. His prime passion in life was education and he helped in starting a number of institutes in the city. |
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Gang of bike thieves held after encounter
Noida, August 17 They have been identified as Sunil, alias DT, Bilal, Sonu, Khushwa, Arun and Satya Prakash. Four stolen bikes and a local revolver were recovered from them. During interrogation, the criminals confessed that they have been stealing bikes for quite sometime and that recently they sold five bikes to two Etawa-based criminals. They also disclosed that apart from stealing bikes, they were experts in snatching cell phones and have snatched over 30 of them. The police had been receiving reports about the gang for sometime. The arrests were made on the basis of a tip-off that the members of the gang would on Saturday meet near the drain in Sector-92 to plan their next crime. Accordingly, a police team surrounded the area and took positions. As soon as the criminals reached there, the police tried to nab them, but some of the criminals started firing at the cops. The police returned the fire and nabbed all five of them. Ram Sen, SO, Phase-II police station said that the gang used to steal only two-wheelers. He informed that the Etawa-based criminals who had bought the stolen two-wheelers from these criminals were also being traced. |
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Five held for planning dacoity
New Delhi, August 17 On the night of August 15, secret information was received regarding six suspicious persons who had gathered in a park behind MTNL office on Palam Dabri road. On the instance of the informer, a police team reached the house of a doctor of Dashrathpuri, Dabri, where the alleged accused had planned to commit dacoity and arrested the criminals. One loaded country made pistol, two knives and two iron rods were recovered from their possession. All the five accused are being further interrogated.
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Four held with fake visas at airport
New Delhi, August 17 “All the four people have been caught while they were trying to flee to the UAE on fake visas. We detained them from the immigration counter late Saturday night and are interrogating them,” a senior Delhi Police official said. Delhi Police also arrested the man who allegedly arranged for fake visas from his Chittaranjan Park residence. “We have arrested Varnam Singh after the four people complained that he had got them these visas,” added the police official. The official said when the police team went to arrest Singh, he tried to offer them a bribe of Rs 700,000. From preliminary interrogation it was found that Singh issued at least 50 such fake visas earlier, the official said. — IANS
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Three held for movie piracy
New Delhi, August 17 The accused, Jitender Mehta, was arrested on Thursday from Raja Garden in West Delhi, where he had gone to deliver prints of the new Hindi film ‘God Tussi Great Ho’ that released on Friday, the police said. “His brother Rahul along with co-accused Mukammil were arrested from a hotel in the Paharganj area following Mehta’s disclosures,” a senior police officer said. Equipment like a projector, a sound recorder/mixer, a computer, a handycam, a mega-amplifier and DVDs of movies like ‘The Mummy’, ‘Ugly aur Pagli’ and ‘Singh is Kinng’ were recovered from the hotel room. “Jitender has been involved in this kind of activity for the last seven years and a number of cases are registered against him in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh,” the officer added.
— IANS |
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Two held for making crackers in residential area
Ghaziabad, August 17 Deepak
Ratan, Ghaziabad’s senior superintendent of police, told mediapersons that late on Saturday night in Loni a police team found two persons manufacturing crackers from explosive material stored in a huge quantity. On being questioned, Gulshan showed his cracker manufacturing
licence. But he was found violating licence terms in a big way. The licence was to manufacture crackers in a deserted land away from the residential locality. But Gulshan was manufacturing crackers in a densely populated locality of
Loni. The storage limit was only 15 kg, but he had stored over 100 kg of explosive in his storeroom in two drums and two gunny bags, said
Ratan. The police arrested Gulshan and his employee Harun and seized the explosive material in addition to the tools to manufacture the
crackers. — IANS |
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Gangster nabbed
New Delhi, August 17 An illegal semi-automatic pistol along with 4 live cartridges was recovered from his possession. According to the police, Deepak is one of the most wanted killers of the Delhi police. He was arrested from village Karala on the basis of a tip off. |
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Mother, daughter killed in mishap
New Delhi, August 17 Poonam Arora, 42, and Shivangi were killed in the accident near Buddha Garden on the south Ridge Road early Sunday. The accident occurred when her husband Vivek
Arora, 45, lost control of the car and rammed into a truck. His elder daughter
Diksha, 20, was also seriously injured. Vivek and Diksha are admitted to the AIIMS trauma
centre, the police said. The police has detained the truck driver for
questioning. — IANS
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Youth rapes minor girl
New Delhi, August 17 According to the police, Ravidas Singh, 19, raped the minor on Saturday. Both the accused and the victim live in the Hari Nagar area. The victim, who belongs to an economically weaker family, studies in class IV in a government school. The police said the medical examination of the girl confirmed rape and further investigations were under way.
— IANS |
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