New Delhi, February 20
The Federation of Central University Teachers Association (FEDCUTA) on Friday completely suspended its strike and demonstration following a meeting held earlier in the day and decided to defer the demonstration which was to be held at UGC on February 24.

This step was taken after the UGC chairman assured FEDCUTA that the UGC draft regulations would be recast in consultation with FEDCUTA and also that the pay revision of teachers would take place on the basis of MHRD notification of December 31.

Aditya Narayan Misra, president of FEDCUTA informed, “As of today we have suspended our agitation programme as the UGC has informed that the draft regulations will be recast only after holding consultations with FEDCUTA. The UGC has assured us that it will stick to the letter and spirit of the MHRD notification of December 31 on teachers’ pay revision. We are satisfied to have got this response from UGC and will be observing their next move.”

FEDCUTA had earlier rejected the draft UGC notification completely as it superseded the MHRD notification on pay revision of teachers, particularly of readers / lectures in selection grade and also there was a serious attack on the autonomy of the universities and attempt to deny and delay promotions to fresh entrants to teaching profession.

FEDCUTA is planning to take up several issues with the UGC and MHRD, viz. advance increments for Ph.D. / M.Phil. w.e.f., 1.1.2006 (instead of 1.9.2008), AGP of Rs 6,600 for new entrants, a one-time option from CPF to GPF, old pension scheme for teachers appointed after 1.1.2004, etc. with MHRD / UGC.

All 24 central universities had observed a complete strike yesterday against the draft UGC regulation on pay revision. The FEDCUTA-led strike was held as they were against the UGC draft regulations that included the clause that existing readers and lecturers in selection grade will have to face the selection committee in order to get revised pay.

FEDCUTA had then stressed that the UGC had devised a very controversial system of performance appraisal for promotion of existing teachers which, if implemented, would adversely affect teaching and research in the universities and colleges.

The DUTA/FEDCUTA combine had met the union HRD minister Arjun Singh yesterday and told him that by superseding the cabinet decision, as subsequently reported in Parliament by MoS, MHRD, the UGC has created a constitutional crisis. The FEDCUTA delegation had also met with UGC chairman Prof. S.K. Thorat and warned him that if the UGC fails to respond to teachers’ demands then he would be held responsible for precipitating a prolonged crisis in the central universities.

New Delhi, February 20
After breaking several rounds of negotiations with students, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration has resolved to address the issues.

“The university has been trying to resolve certain issues raised by students during the last fortnight. Some issues have been resolved following wider consultations with students and faculty,” said a JNU spokesperson.

The students had demanded a reduction in the price of university prospectus. Referring to this demand, the standing committee has decided to provide free prospectuses to needy students and those who come from Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.

“It has decided to refund the prospectus price to applicants belonging to BPL families. The vice-chancellor will also appoint a committee for a comprehensive review of the matter,” the spokesperson added.

The university has also withdrawn the circular pertaining to renting out Parthasarthy Rocks.

“Besides, the university has decided not to impose power charges on hostel residents. Any decision on electricity meters will be decided by an appropriate body with a representative from the students’ fraternity,” the spokesperson informed.

On the issue of OBC reservation, the university has reiterated its commitment to fulfill the criterion “as per the Academic Council resolution.”

However, the students did not seem satisfied with the university administration’s decisions.

A meeting of students from all parties is scheduled for tomorrow. It will be decided then whether to call off the agitation.

“Applicants from BPL families are supposed to spend less than Rs 280 per month. This is as good as not reducing the prices. There would hardly be such students applying for higher education. Besides, there are various other technicalities we are not satisfied with,” said Anand, president of Students’ Federation of India (SFI), JNU.

New Delhi, February 20
A large number of slum dwellers today marched to parliament from Mandi House to protest the demolition of slums.

The protestors submitted a memorandum to union urban development minister Jaipla Reddy, employment and poverty alleviation minister Kumari Selja and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, demanding legislation guaranteeing right to housing and basic services for them.

They marched under the banner of Shramik Sanghthan, an NGO.

Ramendra, convenor, Shramik Sangathan, said that the government, in the name of Commonwealth Games, was planning to demolish slums. “This is not justified. Everybody has the right to live. The government should rehabilitate them before demolishing their dwellings,” he said.

Ramendra said that Jaipal Reddy, for the third time, introduced the Delhi Special Law Provision Bill in Parliament to prepare policies for relocation and rehabilitation of slum-dwellers. This is an old policy of the government, but it had failed to implement it, he said.

Ramendra further said that there were multiple authorities in Delhi and each of these authorities had announced their own policies about rehabilitation. The slum-dwellers were confused as to which policy governed them.

Expressing his disappointment with the government, Ramesh said that at the time of assembly elections, the government had promised to construct four lakh houses under the Rajiv Ratan Awas Yojna. And, out of this four lakh houses, 60,000 were to be handed over to slum-dwellers by the end of 2008. Further, authorisation of 1,639 unauthorised colonies was also promised by the government. But the present status of both the schemes was nil, he said.

Ramendra alleged that the government was now repeating the same story before the parliament elections. He said that Ajay Maken had announced one lakh houses for slum-dwellers. “The announcement is welcome, but there are apprehensions, as by the time the houses would be ready, slums will be already demolished,” Ramendra said.

New Delhi, February 20
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has given a clean chit to its officials in the investigation report of the alleged controversial scam of its housing scheme – 2008. The report was submitted to its vice-chairman, Ashok Kumar Nigam today by the internal inquiry committee, sources said.

According to the sources, the vice-chairman will forward the report to Delhi Lieutenant Governor Tejendra Khanna with his comments. No member of the panel spoke to the media about the findings of the report.

Giving the clean chit to the DDA officials, the report indicated the involvement of those who had applied for flats.

The report is expected to be made public after the upcoming general elections, as it is being feared that any adverse report against any of the DDA officials might result in a backlash towards the incumbent government, the sources said.

The committee was set up in January after union urban development minister Jaipal Reddy announced that all angles of the housing scam would be looked into. Initially the committee was to submit its report by January 24, but it sought more time. It was given a week, but it still could not complete the probe. It was then granted 15 more days.

The three-member team was headed by DDA (finance) member Nand Lal. The other members were deputy legal advisor B K Gupta and director (vigilance) Alok Swarup.

The sources said that CFSL laboratory which was given the software to inquire into the suspected loophole in randomization system of the DDA had also been given clean chit.

The alleged scam came to light when a chartered accountant, Deepak contacted the police and the Indian Justice Party chairman, Dr Udit Raj. The case was finally given to Economic Offences Wing, Delhi police which had arrested a few suspects. The case is still being investigated.

New Delhi, February 20
As per the records of the Delhi police, 2,503 children have been reported missing in Delhi from January 2008 to January 2009. Out of these, only 368 children have been reportedly recovered.

Taking note of the reports regarding missing children in the city, the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) has issued notice to the commissioner of Delhi police for investigation and necessary action.

“We have asked the commissioner to give us a detailed report within 15 days about inquiries and investigations carried out by the Delhi police in these cases, individually. Also, we have asked for a report regarding the system that is proposed to be created by the police to take care of such cases,” said Amod Kanth, chairman, DCPCR.

Providing a break-up of the areas from were these children have gone missing, Kanth said it was the deprived areas that witnessed most of the cases.

“My experience says that most of the missing children belong to marginalised families. Maximum cases of missing children were reported from the areas of East and Northeast districts,” said Kanth.

Kanth expressed that children were the most neglected lot in Delhi, and there was need to address child specific issues. “Missing children is a sensitive issue that has been highlighted for the first time. We must understand the trauma of the families that loose their children,” he said.

The commission has taken specific note of the six children— Jitender, Puja, Durga, Arjun, Puja and Dinesh— who were reportedly missing from the East Delhi colony Vishwas Nagar.

“In addition, according to local sources, 20 more children have gone missing from the same area since 2002,” said Kanth.

The commission said that there were reports that the missing children could have been kidnapped and pushed into beggary, child labour and other illegal activities.

“We demand that a mechanism be formulated in which the child welfare officer is designated to look into each case of missing child. Every state should follow this mechanism and the families of the children and NGOs should also be involved in the investigation,” said Kanth.

Introducing Childline India Foundation that provides child helpline services across the country, Kanth said the Delhi police could work in collaboration with the foundation.

“We have our offices in 83 cities. We deal with two types of calls. It is either the parents who register complaints about their missing children or it’s the children who are lost and could not trace their families,” said Komal from Childline India Foundation.

Offering their help to the Delhi police, Komal said, “We have a wide network of people working with us. Our organisation would be glad if we could help the Delhi police or police in other parts of the country in tracing missing children.”

Noida, February 20
Noida residents will soon have vastly improved postal services in town that will decrease their dependence on private courier companies.

As per the new set-up, customers need not even visit the post office for sending letters or parcels. All they have to do is reach the offices of their sector’s Residents Welfare Association (RWA) and deposit the letter or the packet there. Rest assured, it will not only reach its destination faster, but will also cost much less as compared to the private courier services, say the postal authorities here.

The announcement in this regard was made by Rajesh Singh, director, Postal Services, while inaugurating a modernised post office at Sector 19 earlier this week.

The Federation of Noida RWAs (FONRWA) is quite happy with the move, as it was their initiative. “It will be of great help to people, especially senior citizens, who will not have to travel long distances to reach a post office,” said A.N. Dhawan, senior vice-president of FONRWA.

“All a person has to do is deposit the letter or the parcel with the local RWA and collect the receipt the next day. At the end of each day, a rider from the post office will collect these letters and packets and give receipts of the previous day,” he said.

Out of the total 70 RWAs, at least 30 are expected to agree to the arrangement,” he added.

The postal department will soon send consent letters for the service to RWAs, and the service will start once the RWAs send their consent to the postal department.

With the launch of the service, the postal department hopes to have an edge over private courier companies.

“The move of involving RWAs will increase our base,” said Radhika Doraiswamy, secretary to director-general (posts) and also the chairperson of the postal services board.

New Delhi, February 20
Roses bloomed across the Garden of Five Senses at Said-ul-Ajab. Bright flox mounds and purple cynenaria mounds dotted the park, in shadowy nooks delicate bonsai were on display, the fragrance of aromatic herbs filled the air, while red and pink cacti caught the beholders’ eye.

Gardening enthusiasts had a gala time as the Delhi Tourism’s 22nd Garden Tourism Festival opened at the sprawling Garden of Five Senses here today. It will remain open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The three-day festival is organised by the Delhi Tourism in collaboration with the Delhi government and Incredible India.

Delhi assembly speaker Yoganand Shastri inaugurated the festival.

He planted an Australian bottlebrush and stressed on the role of preserving trees that are vital for human existence.

The main attraction this year is ‘Roses in Landscape’. The blooms are beautiful and a treat for the eyes.  

The display of plants is imaginative and exhaustive. There are hanging baskets, floral animals, cacti and succulents. 

The Delhi Tourism has also organised competitions in 32 odd categories like — potted plants, hanging baskets, foliage plants, cacti and succulents, aromatic plants, theme gardens cut flowers, flower arrangement and tray garden.

Aloevera saplings are being distributed free of cost.

Besides, the festival has an interesting line up of various cultural activities. A musical dance drama on ‘Paryavaran’ was held in the afternoon today.

An on the spot painting competition for children, a cultural programme by Hindi Academy and a Kathak performance by Anu K. Sinha are the highlights for tomorrow. 

A magic show by Iqbal will be held tomorrow and the day after.

The festival has an adventure park for children.

New Delhi, February 20
The MCD, in association with Asian Centre for Organisation Research and Development and Jamia Millia Islamia, will organise a rally on Sunday to bring awareness about the Yamuna.

The rally is being held under Yamuna Action Plan II, and as part of Public Participation and Awareness campaign. Lt Governor Tejender Khanna will flag off the rally at Dr Ansari Auditorium Grounds, Jamia Millia Islamia.

“The rally will create awareness about the state of the 22-km stretch of Yamuna that passes through Delhi and the role that citizens can play in mitigating the impact of pollution,” said a senior MCD official.

New Delhi, February 20
The increasing number of crimes involving motorcycles has made the Delhi traffic police mull over starting a drive for motorcycle owners’ verification.

This will be different from just checking the registration number of a motorcycle, which the police does in normal course.

Delhi police commissioner Y.S. Dadwal informed that the department has been working out a plan to verify motorcycle owners.

Under this plan it will be ascertained whether the owner of the bike is in position to maintain it within his income.

“We will find out whether the person who has bought a bike is employed or has another means of income. And if we come across someone who does not have either of these, we will question him about how he maintains a fancy bike,” said Dadwal.

The idea is to zero down criminals and discourage them from using bikes for snatching and other crimes.

It may be recalled that Bunty gang – a biker gang whose members were apprehended last year — used to shoot people and speed away. Their bikes bore false registration number.

Dadwal said that as part of the motorcycle verification drive the district police along with the traffic police will penalise any motorcycle owner with illegible digits on number plate.

“The traffic police will check the verification of motorcycle owners. The local police at the district level will help the traffic police to penalise anyone with the slightest defect on number plate,” said Dadwal. He added that any tampering of number plate would invite the police attention.

He expressed confidence that the drive would go a long way in discouraging criminals from using bikes.

New Delhi, February 20
To educate people about responsible consumption of alcohol and its effects on human body, the Institute of Bar Operations & Management (IBOM) on Thursday launched a campaign titled ‘Drink Aware India’ in the national capital.

IBOM director Sandeep Verma said the campaign is not meant to discourage people from drinking, but create awareness about alcohol. “We believe that in order to enjoy our drink, we need to be aware of its various aspects. For example, if you drink wine, you should be aware of the type that will suit your meal,” he said.

The campaign includes seminars and workshops. The trade segment too will be involved with bartenders and hospitality staff to spread awareness about responsible drinking and responsible serving. According to Verma, the first phase of ‘Drink Aware India’ campaign is committed to making a significant and sustainable impact on creating a positive role for alcohol in society. “The effort is to make real progress in cutting alcohol misuse and making responsible drinking a valued and enjoyable part of life,” said Verma.

New Delhi, February 20
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of the Delhi government today arrested SHO of Bhajanpura police station and a sub-inspector for demanding and accepting bribe from a restaurant owner in Northeast district of Capital.

According to information, SHO Surya Prakash Rawat and sub-inspector R.K. Tyagi were caught red-handed accepting money from Deepak Aggarwal, owner of Tiger Den restaurant in Bhajanpura. The duo were arrested on the basis of a complaint of Deepak.

According to ACB officials, Deepak has about 12 cabins in his restaurant and the two police officials were demanding Rs 1,000 for each cabin every month to allow its use by customers. According to Deepak, he had earlier twice paid Rs 2,000 to Tyagi in this regard. However, when Tyagi approached Deepak for fixing Rs 12, 000 for every month, he approached the ACB and filed a complained in this regard.

Deepak was given a hidden camera by the ACB officials and was asked to give the money to the SHO and SI at a particular place. As soon as Deepak gave Rs 10, 000 to the SHO and SI, ACB officials, who were present there, arrested the two.

The duo was presented before the magistrate in Tees Hazari Court. Rawat was sent to 14-day judicial custody, while Tyagi was granted an interim bail of five days as his daughter is to get married on February 23.

“Tyagi started crying and pleaded the judge to give him some time for his daughter’s marriage. He was granted five days by the judge on humanitarian grounds. He would be sent to judicial custody after he surrenders on the expiry of this period,” said an official.