New Delhi, October 1
The Supreme Court today issued notice to the Centre and Delhi government on a Uttar Pradesh government petition objecting to the acquisition of 21 acres of land for widening the UP link road connecting the Commonwealth Games Village to Mayur Vihar Phase I and Noida.

Work on NH-24 will, however, continue as the Bench, headed by Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan, did not grant any stay on the land acquisition that has been endorsed by the Delhi High Court.

The HC had failed to appreciate that the acquisition under Section 17(1) of the Land Acquisition Act was against several apex court rulings, senior counsel Mukul Rohtagi, who appeared for UP, contended. The Delhi government had taken possession of the land without informing the state that was using it for controlling the flood waters of the Yamuna.

“The widening of the road, by no stretch of imagination can be called as unforeseen emergency, considering the fact that the petitioners are also using the said land for a public purpose of controlling the floods and maintaining the safety of the people residing in the adjoining areas of the Yamuna river,” the petition said.

Attorney-general GE Vahanvati said the widening of the highway, from the existing six lanes to eight, was necessary in view of the games next year.

The notification on the land acquisition was issued on September 7, while the Delhi High Court had rejected the UP petition against the move on September 29.

The UP government said it had from time to time given land to Delhi for greater public purpose such as Delhi Metro, Commonwealth Games, Delhi PWD. “In the instant case, an arbitrary, unilateral and illegal approach of the respondents is clearly reflected from the fact that the state government had neither been consulted nor any communication to this effect was ever made with the petitioners.”

New Delhi, October 1
Proving that “women can’t drive” is a myth, more than 50 women drivers were flagged off from the Saket today to participate in a car rally to spread awareness about breast cancer.

The initiative is a brainchild of an NGO, Breast Cancer Protection, for raising money and spreading awareness about self-detection of the disease that has attained the status of the most dreaded amongst Indian women.

The chairperson of the organisation, Ramesh Sarin, said the main challenge for people working on the issue was to convince women to take the disease seriously and gather the strength to fight with it till its end.

“I have been through the trauma of detecting it myself and then getting it treated. There is so much stress the whole family goes through during the treatment,” said Renuka Prasad, a survivor of breast cancer herself, who has now devoted her time to working for spreading awareness on the disease.

She added, “I am still struggling with the side effects of the treatment. However, coming from an army background my family taught me how to fight till the end.”

While working with the women of weaker economic backgrounds, Prasad said it needed a lot of effort to tell these women to only think about themselves during the period of their treatment.

“Some women patients save fruits and juices given to them for their children or husbands. It is difficult for them to only think about their own well- being,” said Prasad.

Several specialists in the field of detecting and curing breast cancer like Dr Col C.S. Pant said it did not cost money or consume much time to carry out a self-detection test of breast cancer. “The earlier it is detected, the easier it is to treat it,” said Pant.

The doctors also clarified that only 10 per cent of breast cancer was considered hereditary. “Most of the cancers are sporadic; meaning we do not know why they happened,” said Pant.

A lump of breast cancer could only be actually felt after it was more than 2 cm. The patient could be suffering from the cancer, but might not feel it before that. The doctors said it was because of this reason that women were advised to go for regular medical examinations.

The participants in the car rally included a 79-year-old driver Sita Paintal, who is herself suffering from a form of blood cancer that came with the old age.

“It’s not the driving, but the cause that made the difference. I am myself suffering from a cancer that cannot be treated and I would have to take medication for it all my life,” said Paintal.

She said it was her association with the cause of providing emotional counselling to cancer patients that gave her strength to carry on.

“We have seen that out of patients of all ages, it were the children who recovered from the treatment faster than aged patients. It is because they are full of life and want to get back to normalcy as soon as possible,” said Paintal.

Another patient of breast cancer Meera Subramanium, who went under surgery only two weeks ago played Tanpura at the opening of the event and proved that it did not require a lifetime to recover from the treatment.

Shobhana Bhartia from the Hindustan Times Group symbolically flagged off the participants, who would leave Delhi tomorrow. The rally would culminate in Agra. 

New Delhi, October 1
he Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today filed a case against the promoter of a private hospital in Ghaziabad for allegedly cheating State Bank of India (SBI) of Rs 6.4 crore.

“A case was registered against Dr Kewal Kishan Sood, promoter of Raghuvir Hospital Private Limited on Hapur Road in Ghaziabad,” a CBI official said.

The CBI has registered a case under sections 120-B, 420, 468, 471 IPC.

According to the investigating agency, two years ago SBI’s branch at Nehru Place in Delhi had sanctioned a term loan of Rs 6.4 crore to the hospital to set up a 150-beded hospital at Delhi-Hapur bypass in Ghaziabad.

“The loan that was to be used for the construction of a hospital and purchase of medical equipment was not utilised. The hospital’s promoter siphoned off the amount through the accounts of his two companies,” the official added.

“False invoices of both these companies were submitted to the bank to show purchase of medical equipment. Sood’s house has been searched and several incriminating documents have been seized,” he added. 

Ghaziabad, October 1
A police post was damaged, cops were assaulted and the service revolver of a sub-inspector was snatched. All this happened after a person had died in Nithora police post under the Loni police station area.

The angry people, by placing the body of the victim on Delhi-Saharanpur Road, blocked the highway for several hours.

SSP Ghaziabad, Akhil Kumar suspended all the staff of Nithora police post to placate the people. Pushta police post was also damaged by the protestors.

Din Mohd, 40, a resident of Ashok Vihar colony of Loni had taken Rs 14,000 from someone.

On Wednesday afternoon, the lender with two cops and an SI from Nithora police post came to Din Mohd’s house and took him along to the police post.

Soon afterwards, Din Mohd was admitted to a Sai

Baba home in Khamma Nagar. He died there after some time. Police then called his father and handed over the body to him.

As he reached home with his son’s body, the people of the locality said Din Mohd had died in police post due to torture.

While the police said he had died after heart attack.

The news spread like wildfire. The people of the area went ballistic and jammed Delhi-Saharanpur Road by placing Din Mohd’s body in the middle of the road. The protestors snatched the revolver of R.P. Singh, police post in-charge. They damaged the police post furniture and records. The traffic jam running into several hours stranded a large number of people.

The SSP said action would be taken against those who had attacked and damaged the police post. A report has been registered against them, he said.

New Delhi, October 1
Hundreds of Tibetans, including women living in Delhi and elsewhere, organised a rally at Jantar Mantar today under the banner of India Tibet Coordination Office. They waved placards bearing slogans, “Give human rights to Tibetans, free Tibet, free Panchan Lama now, release political prisoners, UNO we want justice, etc.”

They also protested at the Chinese embassy and a few of them entered the embassy premises, but they were caught by the police and detained.

China, celebrating 60 years of the Communist Party’s rule in its republic, has occupied their homeland for the last 50 years.

Deputy speaker, Tibetan Parliament in exile, Dolma Gyasi said that the citizens of Tibet wanted a peaceful solution to their homeland. Tibetans are victims of genocide.

She sought cooperation of Tibetans living in exile and the Indian government for liberating Tibet from China.

“It has illegally occupied our country though there are many problems in China itself. People are fed up with the communist regime in the country. They want democracy. But the government of China suppresses their movement,” she said.

Addressing the gathering, she said that by claiming Tibet was being developed, the Chinese government was misleading the world. Instead of developing it, China is making Tibet its military base by establishing 17 secret radar stations, 14 military airfields, eight missile bases with 81 intercontinental ballistic missiles, 70 medium range missiles and 20 intermediate range missiles.

Besides, China uses Tibet for chemical warfare exercises and dumps nuclear waste of other countries for huge sums of money, she claimed.

She also said that China did everything in Tibet with a political motive. This was clear after the appearance of an interview of Chinese President Jiang Zemin in the New York Times on August 10, 2001. Zemin admitted in the interview that China’s determination to construct the rail link to Lhasa was a political and military need.

Another member of Tibetan Parliament in exile, Acharya Yeshi Phutsok said that the freedom movement of Tibet would continue “till our country is liberated. Tibetans cannot not mix up with the Chinese as we are religious people while they are communist”. 

New Delhi, October 1
An altercation over peeing on the petrol pump premises turned violent, leading to the shooting of a 22-year-old youth by a petrol pump security guard in the Anand Vihar area of east Delhi last night.

The incident took place around 10.45 pm at Hindustan Petroleum station in the Suraj Mal Vihar area of Anand Vihar.

According to information, the altercation between Himanshu Sharma and the petrol pump staff ensued after Himanshu chose to urinate in front of a shop situated on the premises. When asked by the security guards to refrain from doing so, a fight ensued between Himanshu’s friend and security guards, ending in the shooting of Himanshu.

He was rushed to the nearby Pushpanjali Hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. The police has arrested the security guard responsible and role of other staff members is being investigated.

Himanshu Sharma, a resident of Dayanand Vihar, had gone to fill petrol in his father’s Honda City car from a petrol pump in Anand Vihar.

While the petrol pump staff was filling petrol in his car, Himanshu got a nature’s call and he started urinating in front of a shop inside the petrol pump. When objected by the petrol pump staff, an altercation ensued, leading to the shooting of Himanshu by one of the security guards,” said a senior police official from the district.

Himanshu’s father Pramod Sharma is a builder and family was to leave for Shirdi this morning.

The police has arrested Chadigiram Tripathi (39), the security guard responsible for killing Himanshu.

According to the statement given to the police by one of Himanhsu’s friends, the guard had fired five rounds at Himanshu although he was hit by just one bullet.

Contrary to this, the guard had maintained that he had fired in the air to scare away the groups and only when Himanshu and his friend charged at him he fired at them.

The petrol pump staff has also told police that the boys were under the influence of alcohol and started the fight when asked to behave. The allegations of alcohol have been rubbished by Himanshu’s friend.

Meanwhile, a case of murder has been lodged at the Anand Vihar police station and further investigations are on. 

New Delhi, October 1
Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today opened nine maintenance tribunals on the occasion of International Day for Senior Citizens.

Speaking after launching a campaign for the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, the Chief Minister said that the department of social welfare had developed a policy for senior citizens. The policy is based on the understanding that the elderly have to be provided with a supportive environment on the guidelines of the Act.

The Act provides for compulsory maintenance, protection and welfare of parents. In simple words, every citizen needs to be dutiful towards his infirm parents.

Dikshit further said that nine maintenance tribunals would be functioning from nine revenue districts of ADM offices. Each tribunal would have a chairman and two members. This tribunal would meet twice a week to redress the grievances of senior citizens. She further informed that the Delhi government was considering opening more tribunals in each subdivision of the Capital.

The Chief Minister said that the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 would guide the state to undertake welfare measures for its old citizens, which includes establishing old age homes, providing medical support and taking measures for protecting their life and property.

She exhorted all the stakeholders, the elderly, their heirs, and all relevant governmental agencies to come together to bring in a new era of happiness, hope and purpose in the lives of parents and senior citizens.

Social welfare minister Mangat Ram Singhal said the Delhi government was providing Rs 1,000 monthly pension to those above 60 years. There are 18 recreation centres for them. Fifty more recreation centres would be constructed in the coming years. 

New Delhi, October 1
At least 12 persons from the national Capital are among the victims of the boat capsize tragedy that took place in Thekkady, Kerala, state officials said here today.

They were identified as Pradeep Kumar Jain of New Multan Nagar near Pira Garhi, his wife Sandhya Jain, their daughter Shruti Jain, his mother-in-law Vimala Jain, Partha Sharma of Multan Nagar, Sangeeta Sharma, a senior manager with the State Bank of India, Harendra Singh, Arun Koura, Sruti Koura, Anika Koura, Renu Koura and Salika.

The state government has opened a control room at Kerala House in Delhi (phone number 30411500).

It has also made arrangements to bring the bodies here.

At least 37 people drowned on Wednesday evening after a boat carrying 76 tourists capsised in a lake in the Periyar sanctuary near Thekkady in Kerala. 

New Delhi, October 1
The coming festive season might get spoiled for the residents of south Delhi, as they would have to face long power cuts in their area.

The power supply will be erratic due to the temporary shutdown of Maharani Bagh-Lodhi Road main transmission line being taken up by Delhi Transco Limited (DTL).

The shutdown will continue till October 12.

The BRPL consumers may be most affected by the shutdown, as it gets major power from the transmission line.

According to the Tranco officials, the shutdown is being done to increase the height of the 220 kilowatt transmission line.

“The height of the transmission line has to be increased because of the elevated road being constructed over Barapullah Nallah,” said a spokesperson of Delhi Transco.

The south Delhi areas that may witness outages over the next few days include Lodhi Road, Defence Colony, Nizamuddin, Lajpat Nagar, South Extension, Niti Bagh, Uday Park, Gulmohar Park, Maharani Bagh, East of Kailash, Greater Kailash, Green Park, Hauz Khas, Safdarjung Enclave and their adjoining areas.

According to some BSES officials, the company would backfeed the affected areas to the maximum extent possible.

“We would try our best to compensate with the alternative sources during these 11 days,” said a BSES officer.

Some of the areas might still face loadshedding, since the BSES is heavily dependent on this DTL 220 kilowatt line, said the officer.

“To minimise the impact, the BSES is not only working closely with the DTL, but has also released a loadshedding schedule. The same has been uploaded on the company’s web site,” the official added.