|
|
|
|
DDA allots 5,238 flats
Teachers end stir after cabinet nod
|
|
|
CBI begins probe into Faridabad twin murders
20% less cases of housebreaking this year
Arif-Nadeem gang most active
Large-scale verification of residents in Noida soon
Voters return defective ID cards
Boy dies after winning race
Father, son shot at; robbed of
Rs 6.5 lakh
Needle in the eye
Row in MCD over Cong councillor’s re-election
Jail to Jal Board officials stayed
Sheila to be sworn in as CM today
Malhotra quits as MP
Seminar today
|
|
DDA allots 5,238 flats
New Delhi, December 16 The draw of lots for 5,238 flats was held at the DDA office at Vikas Sadan in the presence of four judges, who belonged to different professions. The one, two and three bedroom flats cost between Rs.700,000 and Rs.7.7 million. Nearly 250 applicants were present inside the conference room where a lottery to select the allottees was being conducted while hundreds more waited outside. The process, which started around 12 noon took just 28 minutes to complete. Around 2.30 pm, DDA officials started pasting the list of the allottees and the crowds rushed into the office to check if their number figured in the list. The succesfull applicants were all smiles. One such applicant who beamed with joy was Sunil Khatri, who at present lives in the Palam area, and had applied for a flat under physically handicapped category. He checked his number several times before he could believe that he had been successful. “I am very happy and am still not able to believe that I have got a flat,” Khatri, who got a single bedroom flat in Lok Nayak Puram, told IANS. Another applicant whose happiness knew no bounds was Susheel Kumar Sharma, an employee of Reliance, currently staying with his wife and son in rented accommodation in the Palam area. “I am so happy that I cannot even explain it. I never knew that I am so lucky. My son is lucky for me and it is because of him that I have got a flat,” said Sharma, who got a two-bedroom flat in the Vasant Kunj area. Asif Khan, another successful applicant, broke into tears of joy as soon as he saw his number on the list pasted near the reception at the DDA office. “The first person I called was my boss as he was the one who supported me throughout,” Khan told IANS. Working with a computer firm, he lives in rented houses with his family in the Vasant Kunj area. Sushil Kumar Meena, involved in home furnishing business, got a flat in the Rohini area. “This was the first time I applied for a flat and I got it. I am extremely happy,” he said. While the draw was being held, some people held a protest at the DDA office, alleging the whole process was unfair. “The DDA has told us that it will put a huge screen outside the office premises for applicants to watch the lottery process but no arrangements have been made,” said Vidhi Sharma, an advocate. “The DDA is hand in gloves with others,” said Atul Shukla, a professor in a government college. “It took 28 minutes to complete the lottery process and select names of 5,238 successful applicants out of 566,906,” said DDA spokesperson Neemo Dhar. The results were uploaded on the DDA website www.dda.org.in. However, the site became very slow as thousands of people went online to check if they have been allotted the flat of their choice. According to Dhar, the successful applicants will receive an official letter from the DDA by Dec 30. “The successful applicants have to deposit the money within two months and there will be some more time as grace period. But no one would be entertained after that and the allotment is cancelled,” Dhar said. Asked if the DDA is planning to bring any new housing scheme, she said: “Around 14,000 flats are under various stages of construction in different parts of the city. As and when they are ready, we will announce the scheme.” The flats, which are being allotted right now, are in different parts of city, including Rohini, Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, Motia Khan, Narela, Pitampura, Pashchim Vihar, Shalimar Bagh, Dilshad Garden and Lok Nayak Puram. The DDA offered similar schemes in the past
also. — IANS |
|
Teachers end stir after cabinet nod
New Delhi, December 16 FEDCUTA and DUTA president Aditya Narayan Misra said, “We have called off the agitation following today’s positive developments in cabinet and the clearance of recommendations of the UGC’s pay review committee for teachers. A delegation of teachers met HRD minister Arjun Singh today thanking him on the positive development.” Vinay Kumar Singh, vice-president DUTA, says, “All teachers have welcomed today’s developments in the cabinet, naturally we have suspended our agitation. We are happy that most of our demands have been accepted. This is a big and bold step forward for the teaching profession and will make it more attractive in the eyes of future generations.” The cabinet on Tuesday finally cleared recommendations of the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) Pay Review Committee for teachers. The move will benefit more than five lakh teachers in over 400 universities and more than 6,000 colleges. University sources inform that in addition to a 70 per cent hike in pay, the UGC panel has recommended additional allowances and new positions to academics in the higher education sector. It has also suggested that the age of retirement be raised to 65 years, extendable up to 70 years. Other perks recommended by the UGC include monetary and non-monetary incentives to ensure teachers do not face stagnation and a ‘revolutionary recruitment policy’ to attract youngsters. Special recommendation has been made for the benefit of women teachers to grant a two-three year sabbatical to them over and above an extended maternity leave to help them bring up their children. The UGC committee also advocated the introduction of new positions, like senior associate professor, senior professor and professor of eminence. Further according to the recommendations, at the entry level, a faculty member will join as an assistant professor, not as a lecturer. The committee has suggested the introduction of an academic allowance of Rs 1,500 per month, as well as allowances towards house rent, transport, special duty, travel and medical expenses. Teachers with good performance records can get an annual increment of up to 4 per cent. |
|
Changing religion a personal choice, says Chand
New Delhi, December 16 Chander Mohan, alias Chand Mohammad, who was in Delhi today said that before taking the decision of embracing Islam, he had done a thorough study of the religion. The best thing in Islam is worship of only one God, he said. His newly married wife Anuradha Bali, alias Fiza, was with him. She also converted to Islam. They came directly from Chandigarh to Delhi in their own vehicle at an invitation of the Press Club. Their security guards were also with them. When asked if he being an AICC member would meet Sonia Gandhi, Chand Mohammad said he would meet the AICC chairperson if he was given appointment. He said that he first embraced Islam and then married Fiza. “Five years back I met Anuradha. Meeting her later gradually turned into affair and I finally married Fiza,” he said while answering a volley of questions by the media. “I first believed in Allah and then married Fiza. I read namaz five times every day,” he said. When asked about the equal rights of wives in Islam, Chand Mohammad said, “Whatever I had I gave it to my first wife and children. Now I have nothing. Second marriage is not injustice to the first wife and children. In Kalka, Panchkula and other districts of Haryana, I am known as social worker. I do not do injustice,” he said. When asked if he could read a few lines of “Surah Yaseen”, a chapter in the Quran, Chand Mohammad’s wife defended him and asked a question to the journalist, “I can read Hanuman Chalisa, Ramayana. Can you read a few lines of these religious books.” In answer to another question as to what is the guarantee that Chander Mohan will continue his second marriage, Fiza said, “Those who believe in God do not fear worldly things.” Chander Mohan was married 18 years ago and has children with his first wife. Fiza said that she would contest election from Panchkula provided she was permitted by her husband. |
|
CBI begins probe into Faridabad twin murders
Fridabad, December 16 The incident, which took place on May 5 this year, is one of the most sensitive criminal cases in the history of Faridabad and still continues to draw people’s attention here. The Haryana government recommended the case to the CBI taking into account the sentiments of the people here. On August 18, M.L.Sharma had met Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on the issue, following which the government had asked the centre to hand over the investigation to the CBI. The incident occurred at about 10.30 am, when
M.l. Sharma’s son Ajay Sharma alias Pinki was on his way to a bank in his car from the family’s petrol pump situated in Sector 3. He was carrying over Rs 18 lakh with him. Just when he and the manager of the petrol pump, Rajender Sharma boarded the car and had started, three criminals on a motor cycle came from the rear side and opened fire on them from a close range. Pinki received three bullets in the chest region while Rajender was hit by two bullets in the temple region. Rajender died on the spot and Pinki succumbed to his injuries on way to hospital. The criminals ran away with the money. The family members of Pinki allege that the circumstances of the case suggest that it was a planned murder and the money was taken by the criminals just to make the incident look like a case of robbery. The family also alleges that the local police tried to discount the conspiracy angle and focussed only on money as the motive of the killing. The Sharma’ s are a known name in industrial and social circles of not only
Faridabad, but in various parts of the state. The action of the local police and the line of investigation adopted by it, apparently, did not go down well with the general people here. According to family sources, a team of the CBI, including an officer of the rank of SP, has already visited the city and has met officials of the CIA, crime branch and the district police here, as well as visited the site of crime. The incident was also a sad reflection on the police that it could not crack the case, following which, the local populace also favoured handing over the case to the CBI. The worse was an allegation made by an eyewitness that an
ASI, was present on his motorcycle near the site of the incident in civil dress. He was asked by the bystanders to chase the criminals, but he refused saying that he was not in uniform. The police official was immediately suspended following a huge public uproar, but was re-instated after about two months. |
|
|
20% less cases of housebreaking this year
New Delhi, December 16 As per the compilation of latest data (till November 30) available for the total incidents of housebreaking in the capital, the city has witnessed 204 less cases this year. While 2011 cases of housebreaking were reported in 2007, only 1807 cases have been reported till November 30 this year. A majority of these housebreaking cases has been reported during 11 am to 1 pm in the houses where both the parents are working and children are in school. And while Delhi police officials do not stop patting their backs on their achievements and attribute it to their vigil and strict policing, veterans of the field tell different story. According to them, the case of housebreaking should be registered under Sections 454 or 457 of the IPC, but the police station officials lodge a complaint of housebreaking under Section 380 of IPC which is less stringent. Sections 454 and 457 are used in cases of housebreaking in order to commit offence and one is punishable up to 10 and 15 years, respectively, under these Sections. The difference being that Section 454 is used in case of daytime housebreaking while Section 457 is used during night incidents. In case of theft taking place while the house was left open, section 380 of IPC which carries punishment up to seven years is used as it implies carelessness on the part of the owner as well. “Majority of housebreaking cases are registered by the police under Section 380 no matter if you had put 10 locks in your house. Since, it does not affect the house owner but draws less flak to the local SHO by seniors, the house owner does not insist on using it. Most of the time the owner does not even know the thin difference between the two Sections,” says a renowned criminal lawyer of the city. However, the police department refutes the charges. “Ours is thankless job. Even if we check the crime people would doubt something fishy behind it. Nobody goes and asks the people who left behind open doors inviting thieves to steal them,” says an SHO posted in South Delhi. |
|
According to the police, Ghaziabad resident Arif-Nadeem’s gang is the most active gang of burglars working in the National Capital Region and includes men from Hapur, Meerut and East Delhi. As per their modus operandi, the duo of Arif and Nadeem wears fancy sunglasses and drive luxury cars to get entry into a particular housing society. As a result of their get up, even the security guards don’t enquire much from them. However, when they leave the premises, valuables from three to six flats are found missing. Recently members of these gangs were apprehended by Lodhi Colony police station who recovered valuables worth lakhs from their rented accommodation in Vasundhara Enclave. The Mintoo gang of Bangladeshi migrants is another vocal gang specialised in housebreaking in the capital. Contrary to Arif-Nadeem gang, members of the Mintoo gang commit burglary during night times. The members of this gang gather in a park or railway track in the vicinity of targeted houses and makes entry into the house via cutting grills from bathroom during the wee hours of night. This gang was instrumental behind committing a burglary from the house of a jeweller in Chitranjan Park few months back. After committing 10 to 15 burglaries and depending upon the valuables they gained, the gang members return back to Bangladesh to invest their booty. According to the police, several of Mintoo gang members have created properties in their native towns on the basis of burglary committed in Delhi.
|
|
Large-scale verification of residents in Noida soon
Gt Noida, December 16 The Noida police has sent a proposal for the approval of the verification plan to the district magistrate (DM) S.K. Sharma. The Noida police wants to follow the verification system in the same manner as done in the neighbouring Gurgaon. “The initiative has been taken with an aim of making Noida a safer city before the Commonwealth Games in 2010. Earlier, only tenants and domestic helps were verified, but now, vendors, contractors, builders, security agencies, property dealers and their employees and parking lot attendants will also be verified,” said a senior police official. The Noida police has requested the DM to issue a license to people in these occupations only after a proper verification.Vendors are the main suspects in most of the cases of thefts in residential areas, claims the police. The police also claims that sometimes criminals work in the garb of property dealers, parking lot attendants and even security guards. The concerns of the Noida police were also echoed by the residents. “Though the tenants are already under the ambit of verification process, their verification is hardly done. Even servant verification is done in a lopsided manner,” said S.K. Khandhari, aresident of Sector-56. “Currently, most tenants come through property dealers and they are not verified. The RWAs or members of the housing societies are not even aware of the people who move in,” said H.S. Kaparwal, president of the Kendriya Vihar Apartment Owners Association. “There are people who have opened shops in residential areas like beauticians, tailors, and those involved in the water supply business. All these people neither take part in colony functions nor do they contribute towards the funds. Who knows, there may be many criminals residing as shopkeeper,” said Arun Kaura, a resident of Sector-12. “There are a large number of people who stay on rent in our sector and in most cases the tenants are changed every one or two years,” added Ashwani Kumar, a resident of Sector-29. |
|
|
Voters return defective ID cards
Noida, December 16 There are over 12,000 voters in Sector-61, but only 15 per cent have got their voter ID cards. Out of these 10 per cent cards are full of errors. Most cards have wrong names or addresses while some have wrong photos pasted on them. Instead of the names of husbands of some women, their father’s name is entered and vice versa. Pushpa Kaul of D-17 says her card has photograph of some other woman. In the card of her husband Bhupender Zutshi, the name mentioned is one Pran Nath. Krishna Sharma of the same sector says her husband’s card shows photograph of someone else. In the card of Wayom Kumar, a resident of D-123, Sector-61, the address printed is D-123
Saket Dhaam. Saket Dhaam is a society in this sector which has group housing flats only. The residents have started depositing the cards back in the RWA office. Even senior officers have errors printed in their voter ID cards. Arun Veer Singh, a senior PCS officer, filled in the form for getting the cards issued for his family members. But he has not received his voter ID card nor his name appears in the voters’ list. Arun Veer Singh has served as the secretary in Noida Authority and additional district magistrate G Nagar for a couple of years. |
|
|
Boy dies after winning race
New Delhi, December 16 Naveen Kharb, resident of Mundela Khurd, participated in the race organised by the Indraprastha Institute of Management and Technology in the sports complex in Hari Nagar of west Delhi on Tuesday afternoon. According to the police, Kharb, a second-year student at the institute, fell unconscious after winning the race and was rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital where doctors pronouinced him dead. Outside the hospital, Kharb’s family and relatives were enraged and accused the institute of negligence. “Naveen suddenly fell unconscious after winning the race. I asked the organisers to call an ambulance but they took the matter very casually. Had they taken a prompt decision, Naveen would have been alive,” alleged Sunil, Naveen’s friend who too participated in the competition. Kharb’s father Naresh said the institute authorities did not take necessary steps to save the boy. “The race was organised but neither any medical facility was available nor any medical team was present at the spot to deal with any mishap,” a visibly angry Naresh told reporters. Deputy commissioner of police (West Delhi) Sharad Aggarwal said no post-mortem examination was conducted. “Since the family has not made any complaint to us, we have not registered any case,” he added. The institute authorities refused to comment.
— IANS |
|
|
Father, son shot at; robbed of
Rs 6.5 lakh
Gt Noida, December 16 The incident occurred at about 1 pm when Ganga Sharan and his son Manoj Kumar were going on a motor cycle to get a property registered at the collector’s office in Greater Noida. Suddenly, a Hyundai Santro car carrying the armed men hit the motor cycle, felling the two. The robbers then snatched their money and shot at them, firing six bullets in all, four of which hit the father. Doctors said the father was in a critical condition but the son was out of danger.
— IANS |
|
Needle in the eye
New Delhi, December 16 Kumkum, the one-year-old baby, was brought to the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Trauma Centre on December 12 with a thick six-inch needle pierced through her eye. The girl was bleeding profusely. “When we took a look at her, we realised that the needle had gone through the globe of the eye touching the roof of the orbit and entered the brain. The immediate response in such a situation would have been to pull out the needle. But since the end of the needle was hooked inside, not only would that have damaged the optic nerve causing her to lose her sight, but also would have caused injury to the brain,” Dr Deepak Gupta of the AIIMS Trauma Centre who performed the surgery said. “We immediately proceeded for the surgery which took us an hour and a half,” he added. A team of four doctors, including Gupta, Shailesh, Kapil Dev Soni and Babita, an anaesthesist with the hospital, conducted the surgery. “Considering her age and the size of the needle and the extent to which it has pierced, we can say it was a challenging case and may be first of its kind in India,” Gupta said. The baby, he added, although in the intensive care unit (ICU), was out of danger. “She is eating well and is with her mother. We will discharge her on December 20,” he said.
— IANS |
|
Row in MCD over Cong councillor’s re-election
New Delhi, December 16 While BJP councillors got agitated over the leader of opposition’s sarcastic remark on VK Malhotra as the ‘Chief Minister in waiting’ and adjourned the House. The opposition Congress alleged that mayor Arti Mehra knowingly delayed the House meeting so as to give enough time to BJP candidate Chaudhary Sunder Kumar to get stay on court orders. The court had recently cancelled the election of Chaudhary Sunder Kumar from Daryagunj ward for not disclosing his assets completely and directed the State Election Commission to initiate criminal proceedings against him. The court had further ordered Congress’s candidate Ramesh Dutta, who had secured the second highest number of votes, to be declared winner. Dutta had filed the election petition challenging Sunder’s election. The leader of opposition also alleged that the ruling BJP is misusing the public money by spending MCD funds extravagantly. |
|
Jail to Jal Board officials stayed
New Delhi, December 16 Staying last month’s order of a single-judge bench, a division bench of Justices
A.K. Sikri and Manmohan Singh issued notice to the secretary of S-Block, Greater Kailash Resident Welfare Association, and posted the next hearing to February 18. The court also ruled that since the then CEO Arun Mathur no longer holds the post, he could not abide by the order and gave him relief. Justice
S.N. Dhingra awarded the jail term to former DJB CEO Mathur, chief engineer (drainage)
R.K. Jain and executive engineer P. Pant; and imposed a fine of Rs.20,000 each to be deducted from their salaries for not repairing a damaged drain in the national capital despite the court’s order two years ago.
— IANS |
|
Sheila to be sworn in as CM today
New Delhi, December 16 All MLAs whose names have been sent to Lt-Governor Tejender Khanna for oath have been informed for tte schedule. All sitting ministers are likely to continue except Yoganand Shastri who is likely to be replaced by Sheila’s loyalist Professor Kiran
Walia. |
|
|
Malhotra quits as MP
New Delhi, December 16 Malhotra was a Member of the Parliament from the South Delhi parliamentary constituency and the deputy leader of opposition in Lok
Sabha. Malhotra would be elected as the leader of the opposition at a meeting of the BJP Legislative Party to be held tomorrow. |
|
|
Seminar today
New Delhi, December 16 |
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Classified Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
