New Delhi, July 23
Hauz Khas Village, the fashion destination catering to the prestigious designers and foreign tourists of the city, is all set to become the major tourist attraction during the Commonwealth Games.

The traders of the village, located in south Delhi, have come together to revive the heritage place with its unique characteristic. They have set a task to restore the village by improving the facilities like parking, lighting, roads, etc in the area.

The village is the cheapest commercial place in Delhi amongst the fashion consultants with high-end designer shops and restaurants strewn in midst of a rural landscape. But according to the traders of the area, the village has lost its glory with the onset of swanky malls.

The area is facing a range of problems. The condition of electric cables is very bad. Parking is the main concern of the shopkeepers and residents. The area has just one DDA parking before the entrance of the village which is not sufficient.

The shop owners have written to local bodies, including local MLA Kiran Walia and member of Parliament Ajay Maken, to help them in renewing the status of the village. “We recently had a meeting with Kiran Walia and Ajay Maken in this regard. They have assured their full cooperation in terms of funds and we are expecting to begin our work soon,” said Raj Dhingra, owner of one of the popular fitness centres in the village.

The traders’ association of the area, Art and Craft Village Association, will upgrade the Deer park which has around 202 species of birds.

“A lot of foreign tourists are expected in Delhi during Commonwealth Games. So, we are looking forward to host yoga and painting sessions, sunrise and sunset viewing sessions to attract crowds. Hauz Khas Village will be converted into a designer hub and an antique and art destination,” said Dhingra.

The Hauz Khas Village, accommodating around 100 shops and the same number of offices, is surrounded by lavish greenery like Rose Garden, Deer Park Lake and 13th century heritage monuments which generate a number of foreign tourists. One can find an impressive range in couture, carpets, old silver antiques, furniture and artifacts that use traditional techniques.

New Delhi, July 23
Five women and two 12-year-old children have tested positive to the influenza A (H1N1) virus in the Capital today. With this the total tally of persons infected with swine flu has reached 120.

This upsurge has caused panic among parents and schoolchildren.

On Wednesday, the Capital had reported 10 fresh cases. Presently, 25 patients are undergoing treatment at the Baba Rao Ambedhkar Hospital, Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Hospital, Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital, Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital and Aruna Asaf Ali Hospital.

According to sources in the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), of the latest cases, six are contract cases.

The latest case is of a 26-year-old woman who traveled from Dubai to Delhi by Emirates flight on July 12. She had been suffering from fever and cough for the last six days and reported to the identified health facility on July 21.

As many schools have closed due to the surfacing of swine flu cases, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has advised them not to create panic among parents and students by taking such steps. She reacted to the actions taken by St Thomas School, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya and Springdales School in Pusa Road when cases of flu were reported. They had asked their students to go on precautionary leave after their students was tested positive.

Noida, July 23
A consumer forum here has slapped a fine of Rs 50,000 on Parsvanath Developers for delay in allotting a flat to a man and also ordered the builder to provide him accommodation till allotment.

Gautam Buddha Nagar District Consumer Forum headed by Justice R.P. Shukla in an order this week directed Parsvanath Developers to pay the complainant, Manish Mittal, an interest at the annual rate of 18 per cent on the amount he had paid to the builder so far. The interest would have to be paid from 2007 till the flat is handed over to him.

Mittal said in his complaint before the consumer forum that he had booked a flat in Noida in 2005 and the company had promised possession in 2007.

When he approached the builders in 2007 for the flat, he was given various excuses.

Mittal alleged in the complaint that Parsvanath Developers denied him the possession as he dis not share cordial relations with his wife, co-owner of the flat who happens to be a daughter of senior vice-president of the company.

In his complaint, Mittal said he had paid the whole amount for the flat and he should be given possession of it irrespective of his relations with the co-owner.

The forum dismissed the builders’ contentions and asked them to hand over the flat to the complainant along with the compensation. — IANS

Ghaziabad, July 23
Advocates struck work in all Ghaziabad courts today to protest against the murderous attack on advocate Jagdish Chauhan of Sahibabad.

They later presented a memorandum to the superintendent of police for the early arrest of the culprits.

Jagdish Chauahan was seriously wounded in indiscriminate firing by bike-borne assailants.

The attack was in connection with a land dispute he had with some people, police said.

Indiscriminate gunshots were fired on Chauhan while he was on the way to courts in his Maruti car along with his friend

Suresh Jain from his residence in Rajinder Nagar, Sahibabad on Wednesday.

As his car reached Lajpar Nagar, he was surrounded by three bike-borne assailants, two of whom fired gunshots on him from close quarters. He was hit at three places, in the lower abdomen, shoulder and in his waist.

The first shot had pierced the front windscreen of the car and embedded in his stomach.

The shooting took place in busy traffic area at about 10.30 am. Chauhan was rushed to Fortis Hospital in Noida where his condition is still serious

The assailants, one of whom was wearing a helmet, sped towards Bhopura.

New Delhi, July 23
Waste can be a resource! Sounds strange, but this is what forms the central concept behind SEARCH, a joint initiative by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and Tetra Pack Ltd., undertaken to inculcate a practice of waste management through effective recycling.

Flagged off here today at Banyan Tree Public School (BTPS) in the Capital, the environment-friendly drive would be reaching out to the target group of teachers and students, within the age group of 7-14 years.

SEARCH stands for Sensitisation, Education and Awareness on Recycling for Cleaner Habitat, and entails carrying awareness workshops in 30 schools each in Delhi, NCR and Bangalore.

Youth can usher in a change, and children can play a proactive role in moulding the mindset of people at large.

“According to the latest available census, in India about 40 per cent of the populace is below 18, and hence this programme is looking for the earnest participation of school-going children. These children would act as potential catalyst for the save environment movement,” outlined Ranjana Saikia, associate editor of TERI’s youth education and action.

A student of standard IX of BTPS, Shruti Garg, who is very excited about the whole idea behind campaign, said, “We should dispose waste properly to save the planet from toxic accumulation, and lessen generation of waste. While writing, I use both the sides of a papersheet.”

Shruti feels that the government needs to develop environment-friendly measures such as arranging for proper waste disposal facilities.

Environmentalists feel that environment education holds the key to mitigating challenges of climate change. “It’s imperative to reduce the consumption of non-biodegradable waste to the extent it can be. And only then can the planet be saved from the dangers of greenhouse effects and climate change,” cautioned Ranjana.

The pilot project comes at a time when each day Delhi and Bangalore account for nearly 5,922 and 1699 tonnes of waste, respectively.

Ghaziabad, July 23
An official of the Delhi government and his woman subordinate were arrested in Ghaziabad early today after they were found having sex in his car.

Anil Kumar, a food inspector posted in Delhi’s Nand Nagri area, was found “in a very objectionable condition” with a woman in his car parked in a deserted area near Lohia Park in Sahibabad, the police said.

According to Yogesh Pathak, inspector of Sahibabad police station, they were patrolling the area at around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday when they noticed a car parked in a remote, deserted area near the park with its engine switched on.

“Anil Kumar and his subordinate were found in a very objectionable and semi-nude condition when we forced them to open the door. Although a bottle of whiskey and empty glasses along with water bottle were found in the car, they were not drunk,” he said.

Both the Delhi government employees have been booked under Section 294 (obscene acts) of the Indian Penal Code IPC and the car seized,” Pathak added. — IANS

Noida, July 23
Extortionists have been collecting “goonda tax” from three-wheeler and tempo drivers for the past about two months at Mamura crossing and near the Model Town police post in Sector 62, Noida.

Those who do not shell out the money—Rs 10 per trip—are beaten up by the goons.

Interestingly, cops and the home guards at the Model Town police post feign ignorance or simply look the other way while the extortionists are at work. According to three-wheeler drivers, these goons are thriving with connivance of some influential person as they are neither afraid of anybody nor do they hesitate to thrash the tempo drivers.

The main grouse of the three-wheeler drivers is that the police do not entertain the complaints of the victims. The vehicles of all those who refuse to pay are snatched by the goons.