New Delhi, August 13
The secret template India uses to print currency notes has been “compromised” and that is possibly why fake but real-looking Indian currency notes are being pumped in, says the Central Bureau of Investigation. The CBI, the nodal agency for checking fake notes, has now formed a special team comprising its sleuths and officials from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Forensic Science Laboratory to find out how and at what level the design got “compromised”.

“Our investigations have revealed that the 2005 secret security template which was introduced as part of the new design adopted then has been compromised,” CBI Director Ashwini Kumar said. Asked, if the country was still using the security template, he said: “yes”.

By using the word “compromised”, the CBI means that the counterfeiters have deep knowledge about the kind of special ink, paper and other ingredients that go into the making of notes.

Giving details of the investigation team, CBI spokesperson Harsh Bhal said: “A special team has been formed which consist of officers from the CBI, DRI, RBI and CFSL. The team will investigate how and at what level the security template has been compromised.”

Sources said the ink and paper that go into the making of fake notes are being imported from foreign countries, which is a matter of concern.

Cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar had earlier this month chaired a meeting on the issue of fake Indian currency notes.

It was decided at the meeting to take up the issue of FICN with the European countries, including Britain, which are exporting ink and currency paper to Pakistan from where most of the counterfeits originate. Media reports suggest that FICN even bore authentic series codes indicating the deep knowledge of anti-national elements about the security features.

The CBI was creating a national data bank of fake currencies, sources said, which it believed would help trace the origin of the fake notes and the areas in which it had been circulated.

The government is indigenising the production of a special paper to print the Rs 500 notes, the most frequently counterfeited currency in the country. The Security Paper Mill at Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh has received the nod from the Ministry of Finance to produce papers on which the Rs 500 notes could be printed. — PTI 

Ahmedabad, August 13
The kingpin of a major fake currency racket in the country, having links with a Pakistan intelligence agency, was arrested by Gujarat Anti- Terrorist Squad and counterfeit notes with face value of Rs 1.35 lakh seized from his possession, officials said today.

Asgar Ali Abdul Hussain Abuli, who is believed to be the main agent of pumping counterfeit currency into the economy, was arrested last night, ATS officials told reporters here.

"Apart from 1.35 lakh counterfeit notes, ATS has also seized some objectionable documents, besides a Bangladeshi passport from Abuli," ATS IG Ajay Tomar said.

He has links with officials of Pakistan intelligence agency, officials said.

"During the interrogation, we found that Pakistan and Dubai based elements, who run this racket, would send fake currency consignment to Abuli via Nepal and subsequently he would distribute in the network," he added.

The accused, who originally hails from Godhra, shifted to Pakistan with his family and got a passport from Karachi in 1977. Subsequently, he moved to Dubai in 1984 where he stayed till 1986 and thereafter returned to Pakistan, Tomar said.

In 1994, he was arrested in Karachi for forging a bearer certificate and was jailed for a couple of months, he said.

Abuli returned to India with his family in 1998 and landed up with sundry jobs in Godhra, Ankleshwar and Ahmedabad, ATS officials said. — PTI

Midnapore (WB), August 13
A week after admitting that the anti-Maoist operations by joint forces at Lalgarh were a failure, the West Bengal government today said the personnel would not be pulled back and the next phase to flush out the Naxalites would begin soon.

“The next phase of the operation will start very soon and will be done maintaining public relations with the people,” Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen said. “There is no possibility of calling off the operations unless the entire area is free from Maoists,” he said after a meeting with the police and district officials. — PTI

Guwahati, August 13
Senior leaders of Apunba Lup that is spearheading the protests against fake encounter killings of a youth in Imphal city on July 23 have gone on hiding following arrest of four of their senior leaders under the National Security Act (NSA) on August 10.

A source in Imphal said Lup leaders had become extra cautious following arrests of their senior leaders and sensing that the police is looking for them. 

However, activists of Apunba Lup, the umbrella organisations of about 30 civil society groups, held protests demonstrations in various parts of Imphal area yesterday braving heavy deployment of police and paramilitary forcers.

A police source said there were no untoward incidents yesterday though some of the protestors held demonstration near official residences of some ruling party MLAs.
Meanwhile, curfew was relaxed for nine hours yesterday in greater Imphal area.

Phulbani (Orissa), August 13
The first death anniversary of VHP leader Laxmanananda Saraswati, whose killing triggered anti-Christian riots in Kandhamal district, was peaceful today.

“There was no untoward incident at any place in Kandhamal. We have taken steps to ensure that peace is maintained across the district,” director-general of police (DGP) Manmohan Praharaj, who has been camping in Kandhamal for two days, said over the telephone.

Over 2,000 security personnel, including the CRPF, Orissa Special Strike Force, Special Operations Group, Orissa State Armed Police and Orissa Disaster Rapid Action Force have been deployed, while the district administration has refused permission to rallies and dharnas.

“People observed the day at their villages instead of participating in a silent rally proposed by the VHP,” the DGP said.

The VHP observed the anniversary as ‘Sacrifice Day’ in the district. People who felt insecure were asked to take shelter in camps, he said.

Maoist posters warning certain Hindu leaders to refrain from observing Saraswati’s death anniversary were seen at Tumudibandh, Daringbadi and Kotgarh areas of the district. The DGP said “We suspect it to be the handiwork of anti-socials and not Maoists. We have seized some threatening posters.” — PTI

Ahmedabad, August 13
In the second case where an encounter involving the Gujarat police during the Narendra Modi rule will be probed again, the state High Court today ordered that a three-member committee of top police officers would further investigate the killing of alleged Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) woman activist Ishrat Jahan in 2004.

Acting on a petition filed by Ishrat’s mother Shamina, who alleged that her daughter was killed in a fake encounter by the Gujarat police, Justice Kalpesh Jhaveri said the committee would be headed by state Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Pramod Kumar.

The other two members of the committee were Inspector General Mohan Jha and Deputy Inspector Genearal JK Bhatt, the court said.

After the Soharabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, this is the second case where courts have ordered further probe on veracity of encounters carried out by the state police.

Mumbai-based Ishrat Jahan was killed in an encounter along with three other men by the Detention of Crime Branch (DCB) of Ahmedabad police in June 2004.

The DCB, headed by then DCP DG Vanzara, who is a prime accused in the Sohrabuddin encounter case, had claimed that all four had links with Pakistan-based terrorist outfit, the LeT, and they were on a mission to kill Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

Besides Ishrat, Javed Ghulam Sheikh, alias, Pranesh Kumar Pillai, Amjad Ali, alias, Rajkumar Akbar Ali Rana and Jisan Johar Abdul Gani were also killed in the encounter carried out near Kotarpur waterworks, in the outskirts of the city.

The committee has been asked to submit its report on or before November 30. Shamina, in her petition, has sought CBI investigation into the case. She has also demanded compensation for the killing of her daughter in the alleged fake encounter. — PTI 

Guwahati, August 13
Two persons, including an infant, were drown and over two lakh rendered homeless in eastern Assam districts of Dhemaji and Lakhimpur where rivers have breached embankments at several places and have disrupted surface communication to Dhemaji district headquarters bordering Arunachal Pradesh. Crop over hundreds of hectares has also come under water, official sources said.

According to information, two persons, Kamakhya Hazarika and a five-month-old baby of Kushal Choudhury, were drowned in Kumotia river at Sesapukhuri in Dhemaji district as the boat they were in met with a mishap. The residents of over 220 villages have been rendered homeless by floods in Dhemaji district, which has been cut off from the rest of the state as flood waters of Jiadhal and Kumatia rivers breached the National Highway 52 at three different places, according to an official source. The affected people are taking shelter on highways and embankments.

The only railway link to the district from Guwahati, too, has been rendered useless after the railway track had been washed away by floodwaters at Kekuri and Norabeel last night. This has resulted in disruption of communication to Arunachal Pradesh through the only railway link.

All the rivers are in spate in Lakhimpur district where Singra and Ranganadi rivers have breached embankments at two places. A source in the Water Resource department informed that the rivers in both the districts are flowing above the danger mark.

Incessant rains along the foothills of Arunachal Pradesh have swelled the rivers in eastern Assam. The main channel, Brahmaputra river, is flowing above the red mark at Dibrugarh and Neamati Ghat in Jorhat district.

Rain-fed rivers flowing down from Bhutan Himalayas have inundated vast tracts of land in Baksa and Chirang districts of lower Assam areas where the situation may turn worse in next 48 hours if the rains continue, according to official sources here.

Meanwhile, drought-like situation in most of the districts in Assam has improved due to average rainfall of 28 mm in most parts of the state during the last three days. Agriculture Minister Pramila Rani Brahma said that there would be a 20 per cent fall in rice production due to the drought-like situation that was prevailing in many parts of the state.

New Delhi, August 13
Rajya Sabha member Tarlochan Singh has appealed to the Centre to provide all possible assistance to the farmers of Punjab and Haryana so that they produce the maximum rice to meet the food crisis the country was faced with.

“I again request that the condition imposed by the Agriculture Minister that subsidy will be given only to those farmers who have sown paddy after July 15 be changed. Most of the farmers in Punjab and Haryana have sown paddy before this date,’’ he said in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

New Delhi, August 13
A review committee, formed by Congress high command, will be visiting Chandigarh to solicit the views of Haryana leaders on holding an early Assembly election in the state.

Politically indications are that Haryana will go to polls in October alongside Maharashtra. After having swept the Lok Sabha polls by winning nine out of 10 seats, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has expressed confidence that the party was on a strong wicket and could win hands down.

A three-member committee , constituting Prithviraj Chavan, Mohinder Singh Kaypee and Hari Prasad, will be visiting the state capital on August 14. 

The committee is expected to meet Haryana leaders on seek their opinion on what should be ideal time for conducting the polls.

The central government wants to assess the outcome of the monsoon. Large parts of the state, especially, northern areas, grow paddy and high quality premium basmati rice. 

The outcome of the rain and availability of power to operate tubewells will decide a chunk of votes in the rural areas. The state leaders will have to be indicated that the polls could be advanced.

On the industry front, there are chances that the aborted plan of the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries limited (RIL) will be revived. This had led to a handsome land acquisition payments for farmers. 

In southern Haryana, work on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal expressway is going at fast pace while the Chief Minister is hopeful to showcase Gurgaon metro as a sign of development.

New Delhi, August 13
A plan of the Union Home Ministry to curtail the special powers given to security forces in insurgency-hit areas like the North-East and J&K has hit a rough patch. The Defence Ministry has made it clear that no powers can be curtailed without the armed forces agreeing to it.

The armed forces have reportedly conveyed that the deployment of forces in the disturbed areas will be hazardous unless they are backed by the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). The armed forces have elucidated that the Act does not give any blanket permission to the forces, as it was being made out to be. The forces still come under the rule of the law like the IPC or the CrPC. It is just that the state government cannot prosecute the forces, only the Central Government has that power once the Act is imposed in an area. If the power to prosecute is given to the state government, then the armed forces will be like the local police, facing the same pulls and pressures at the hands of the local administration.

In the N-E and J&K, there have been periodic protests against the imposition of the AFSPA. If Irom Sharmila is sitting on a hunger strike in Manipur, all political parties in J&K want the AFSPA removed. In other N-E states, demands to remove the Act have been accompanied by violent protests, the latest one being against the killing of a student, Sanjit, who was allegedly killed in a fake encounter.

Sources in the Defence Ministry confirmed that a discussion with the Home Ministry will be held to discuss the concerns of the forces. Comments have been sought from the Army. The Home Ministry has sought to amend certain clauses of the Act that include identifying adequate suspicion before taking any action. The armed forces are not keen on it.

Just 10 days ago, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram had told mediapersons that the AFSPA would be amended and its application would be restricted. “The Congress had made a pre-poll promise that it would re-visit the AFSPA and now we are considering amendments to that,” the Home Minister has said.

Its application will also be limited, the Home Minister had said, while replying to a specific query. 

BRIEFLY

15 cops suspended
RAIPUR: About 15 policemen were suspended in Chhattisgarh after they refused to take part in anti-Maoist operations, the state police chief said here on Thursday. “We have made groups of 100 policemen in insurgency-hit areas to launch anti-Maoist operations but 15 constables were reluctant to join the drive and were thus suspended," Director General of Police (DGP) Vishwaranjan told IANS. The suspended policemen were posted in Rajnandgaon district in the state's western region bordering Maharashtra where the Maoists killed 29 policemen, including a district police chief, July 12. — IANS

Taslima’s visa extended
New Delhi: The government has extended the visa of controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin for six months till February 16 next year. Nasrin, who was asked to leave India in March this year, returned here on August 6 and was whisked away to an undisclosed destination in the Capital. The writer, who will turn 47 on August 25, had sought extension of her Indian visa which expires on August 17. — PTI

2 die of mysterious fever
RAMESWARAM: Two persons, including a nine-year-old girl, died due to a mysterious viral fever, which had also affected over 200 persons in and around Rameswaram, Medical Officer Dr Anga Reddy said. The patients complained of severe body and joint pains and high temperature. “We cannot diagnose the patients as there is no facility here. We don’t know what viral fever they have,” he added. — PTI

Quake in Andamans
NEW DELHI: A moderate earthquake shook the Andaman Islands Thursday afternoon. The quake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale hit the islands at 2.52 pm, the Met department said. There was no immediate report of any casualty or loss of property. This is the second quake in the last three days to hit the islands. — PTI

3 IAS officals booked
LUCKNOW: An FIR has been lodged against 15 persons, including three senior IAS officials, in connection with alleged irregularities in allotment of plots to hotels in Noida during the previous Mulayam Singh government in the state. — PTI