New Delhi, October 15
The ‘green brigade’ is planning to lodge their protest against the approval granted by India’s biotechnology regulator Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) for environmental release of genetically modified (GM) Bt Brinjal by observing a daylong fast on the World Food Day, tomorrow.

“Our message is simple: We would rather fast than eat your poison,” says Kavitha Kuruganti of the Collation for GM-free India, a conglomeration of environment, farmers, consumers, women and academicians’ groups, protesting against GM crops.

The coalition is urging all those who hold an anti-GM food stand to convey the message to the government through the fast tomorrow. “You can fast wherever you are but an ideal situation would be if some of you can form a group and sit outside the office of any authority concerned for a while at least, to convey your message,” says Kuruganti.

The group’s contention is: “The unneeded Bt brinjal will take away choices from farmers and consumers in irreversible ways. The GEAC, without addressing any fundamental concerns with regard to GM foods cleared Bt Brinjal --- the first ever GM food crop in India and the first ever such GM vegetable in the world. In fact environmental release is just a euphemism, being used for some reason for permission for commercial cultivation since environmental release began years ago with open air trials”.

As per the coalition, “prima facie it appears that the expert committee has not responded to all the issues raised about the safety of Bt Brinjal adequately. More importantly, it appears that no satisfactory answers have been yet preferred about the very need for this Bt Brinjal when safer, sustainable and affordable alternatives exist.” Sources in the Environment Ministry also indicate that the GEAC members had not taken the decision in unison. Members of the coalition want the government to reject the application of Bt Brinjal. “We need real, sustainable solutions and not false and faulty solutions for the crisis in Indian farming. We hope that the government will heed to these concerns.”

In the backdrop of raging debate over safety and ecological impact of GM crops the government seems to be treading carefully over the issue. Environment minister Jairam Ramesh, while cautioning that he would not come under pressure from environmental groups, has assured that the final call would only be taken after considering all relevant arguments. “The decision will be made only after the consultations process is complete and all stakeholders are satisfied that they have been heard to their satisfaction,” Ramesh said.

In a statement issued on Thursday, he said consultations would be organised with stake holders at different places. “Strong views have already been expressed on the Bt-brinjal issue, both for and against. My objective is to arrive at careful , considered decision in the public and national interest,” he said.The minister said the report of the expert committee submitted to the GEAC is being made public with immediate effect.

Environmentalist Gopal Krishnan says the permission should be withheld with immediate effect. “If the government carries forward the environmental release of Bt Brinjal, floodgates will be opened for other GM food crops like rice, corn and okra.”

The Kheti Virasat Mission, an environmental health action group which is an associate of the coalition groups for a GM-Free India, said the nod to Bt-Brinjal was “unacceptable”.

“It is a shame that regulators in this country have put the interests of corporations over the interests of ordinary citizens,” said Umender Dutt, executive director of the mission in Bathinda

“We are yet to see the report of the expert committee. But prima facie, it appears that the committee has not responded to all issues raised about the safety of Bt brinjal adequately. More importantly, it appears that no satisfactory answers have yet been given about the very need for this Bt brinjal when safer, sustainable and affordable alternatives exist,” he added.

Accusing the committee of not being impartial, the activists said, “This expert committee, its constitution, its processes, etc, are all fraught with problems. We had discovered that a few of the expert committee members were not even aware that the report was finalised. “ However, those arguing in its favour say that GM brinjal will not require pesticides.

(With inputs from Rajay Deep in Bathinda)

New Delhi, October 15
Visiting US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns is understood to have discussed the situation in the region with External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, particularly the rapidly deteriorating security situation in Pakistan.

Burns, who is here to do the ground work for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Washington in November, also discussed with the Indian minister the situation in Afghanistan, especially in the context of a recent suicide bomb attack outside the Indian Embassy in Kabul.

Krishna is learnt to have told Burns that the international community needs to put more pressure on Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks. In this connection, he also expressed India’s disappointment with Pakistan over the acquittal by a Lahore court of Jamat-ud-Dawa (JUD) chief Hafeez Saeed, the plotter of the Mumbai attacks.

Talking to reporters after his meeting with Krishna, Burns said the focus of his visit was to review the arrangements being made for the Prime Minister’s visit. He noted that Manmohan Singh would be the first state guest of the Obama administration, reflecting the importance the US attached to ties with India.

He said the two countries had a rich agenda for cooperation and partnership of a wide range of issues, including health, education, civil nuclear energy, defence, clean energy and climate change.

New Delhi, October 15
Two major agreements to boost defence cooperation between India and Russia are likely to be signed during the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s visit to Moscow later this year.

Decks for the signing of the two agreements were cleared today during the ongoing visit of Indian Defence Minister AK Antony to Moscow. One agreement will be on extending the Military Technical Cooperation for 10 years from 2011 to 2020 and the second relates to after- sales product support for defence equipment of Russian origin, spokesperson of the Defence Ministry Sitanshu Kar said here today.

The outlines for the two agreements were hammered out during the meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) which concluded in Moscow today. The two-day meeting was presided over by Antony and his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov.

The meeting reviewed the status of various ongoing bilateral defence cooperation projects. The Commission also reviewed the status of two major projects for joint design and development of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) and the Multi-Role Transport Aircraft (MRTA).

The Russian side has agreed to schedules for the indigenous production of T-90-S tanks and SU-30MKI fighter jets in India.

On the sale of the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, both sides agreed that the cost negotiations would continue to find a mutually acceptable solution. Issues relating to defence supplies in a number of other projects were also reviewed in detail by the Commission.

Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi here on Thursday blamed the BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh and earlier ‘saffron’ governments in Jharkhand for encouraging Naxalism by doing less development.

Addressing mediapersons on the second and last day of his Jharkhand visit, Rahul said: “Naxalism is based on two-pronged issues -- in states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand -- the governments did not reach out to all people and secondly, the resultant less development triggered frustration among younger generations.”

Referring to NREGA scheme to point out the success story of the Congress-ruled states like Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, etc, he said if this very project was followed in letter and spirit, major achievements could have been achieved to contain poverty and corruption.

In Uttar Pradesh, said Rahul, Chief Minister Mayawati had termed the NREGAS as 'bekar' (worthless), “but if you go to the Congress-ruled states, you see a different perspective altogether”

The Congress general secretary also spoke about bridging the gap between cities and villages for providing equal opportunities to every citizen. “There are two Indias -- one of the cities with vast opportunities and another of the villages with fewer options available to grow… Bring ‘two Indias’ together for more economic growth and opportunities for every citizen.”

Apparently on a mission to win heart of the youth and hear plight of the poor, particularly those belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe, Rahul made a hectic tour of the state covering five meetings at Sahibganj, Dumka, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh and in the state capital on Wednesday.

On Wednesday evening, he also met Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee leaders, the meeting among others attended by Union Food Processing Industries Minister Subodh Kant Sahai, state in-charge K Keshav Rao and JPCC president Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu. On the occasion, he said “defeat of a united Congress could never become a reality”. Interestingly, the message assumed significance in the wake of growing dissidence in the state Congress as many former MPs were demanding change of leadership in the state.

At the press conference, Rahul sounded like an army general when he said a democratically-elected ‘platoon of youth leaders’ would be ready by next year, and, he felt, it would be a "historic step" in Indian politics. "Not a single post will be nominated in the Youth Congress after the completion of the exercise that began almost a year ago,” Rahul said. "I have come with a message to Jharkhand that the membership drive for the Youth Congress is a road being constructed for them to have direct access to mainstream politics… No nomination, no lobbying… my message across the country is that anybody who performs can climb up the ladder.”

New Delhi, October 15
Expecting that it will be asked to play a role in anti-piracy operations, the Indian Air Force (IAF) would, for the first time, be undertaking a week-long joint exercise with Royal Oman Air Force (RAFO) starting October 22.

Crucial from a military point of view, Indian pilots will get their first sight on the latest version of the US-built F-16 fighters that Oman will deploy. The fighters called “Block 52 series” of the F-16 are with Oman and the USA will supply the first batch of the same to Pakistan in the next few days.

Oman is one of the few middle-east countries that are not “pro Pakistan”. It is located close to piracy infested waters in the Gulf of Aden and had provided berthing facilities to Indian Naval warships patrolling the piracy infested waters off the coast of Somalia in the past one year.

Asked if the IAF was preparing for anti-piracy operations in support of the Indian Navy, which has deployed its warships in the Gulf of Aden, IAF vice-chief PK Barbora said, “We do not know whether we would be called for such operations. But it’s better to be prepared”.

“In case of a requirement ( for anti-piracy operation), we can send our fighters for patrolling and surveillance. We can also help our Navy in terms of speed and manoeuvrability,” he added.

He said both air forces will undertake air-to-ground missions and practice integrated training and operations in desert terrain during the joint exercise, for which the IAF would field six single-seater Jaguar fighter bombers while the RAFO would deploy Jaguars, as also F-16s. The exercise, code-named Eastern Bridge, would be held at a base in Thumrait, nearly 1,200 km from capital Muscat, which is home to over 3,50,000 NRIs.

Bangalore, October 15
Controversy-laden Karnataka High Court Chief Justice P D Dinakaran bunked the court again once again today, the second time since Tuesday.

Dinakaran came to the court on Wednesday. However, he went about his work in a hurried manner. In about 30 minutes time he was through with the cases listed for his court.

Today he did not turn up for work at all. Court Hall number 1, where Dinakaran was to conduct the proceedings, remained closed. “Sitting has been cancelled”, a member of Dinakaran’s personal staff told this reporter. “No idea,” was the response when the staff member was asked why Dinakaran did not come.

Dinakaran, who earlier ignored the AAB’s (Advocates Association, Bangalore) warning asking him to refrain from coming to the court till he was cleared by the Supreme Court of land-grabbing charges levelled against him, started absenting himself from the court after the Tamil Nadu government sent a fresh report to the Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan on his alleged attempts to destroy evidence of land grabbing.

Dinakaran, who hails from Tamil Nadu, was a judge in the Madras High Court before moving to Karnataka in 2008. Last week, the collector of Dinakaran’s native Tiruvallur district, on the directions of CJI, had sent him a report, confirming the allegations.

Following this, the Supreme Court’s panel of top judges (collegium) responsible for appointment and promotion, put on hold his proposed elevation to the SC.

The latest report, second in a week by the district collector, is understood to have detailed attempts to remove fencing from the land allegedly encroached in judge?s name.

While Dinakaran’s absence in the court today was notified in advance, it was not so on Tuesday. On Tuesday the Chief Justice was scheduled to hear 28 cases, including a matter which was posted for final hearing.

“Only in the rarest of the rare cases, a sitting of court is cancelled. It seems Dinakaran will now continue to absent himself from work”, K N Putte Gowda, senior lawyer and AAB president, told the TNS.

New Delhi, October 15
The government today decided to set up an Indo-US education forum to promote investments and collaborations in the education sector between the two countries.

Interacting with William Burns, under secretary, Political Affairs, US, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said the two countries were keen to take bilateral ties forward in the spheres of education and research.

“We discussed the possibility of collaborations on every front - from distance education, research and skill development to university setting up, PPPs and exchange of faculty. The US partners are happy to collaborate at all levels,” Sibal said.

The minister will lead a delegation of industrialists and educationists to the US from October 16. During the visit, the Indian delegation will meet with the heads at MIT, Yale, George Washington Universities among others. They will also meet Congressmen and senators to firm up discussions around the setting up of the council.“We hope something substantive will emerge from our meetings in the US,” Sibal said, referring also to the US visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh scheduled later.

The government is also keen to work on ways to seek foreign collaboration for setting up of 14 innovation universities, with Sibal today saying the ministry needed appropriate partners for the project. “Once the Foreign Education Providers’ Bill is put in place, US universities can come to India. We are still working on the manner in which such foreign campuses will run and operate,” the minister added.

New Delhi, October 15
Under fierce criticism for the recent fee hike in Kendriya Vidyalayas (KV), the government today, in a face-saving act, rolled back the raise in case of differently abled students whose parents had been aggressively resisting the move.

Reports are that even the Prime Minister’s Office was petitioned on the case which saw parents across sections, especially those of the students with disabilities, slam the government move that caused over 100 per cent fee hike in KVs from October 1 this year.

Though the parents of students across sections are still agitating, the Ministry of Human Resource Development today announced the relaxation for the students covered under the Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Act, 1996.

The raised fee will, henceforth, not be applicable to any child suffering 40 per cent of disability of any of the following nature certified by a medical board of a government hospital - low vision, leprosy cured, hearing impaired, locomotor disability, mental retardation and mental illness. These categories are covered under the PWD Act.

It is not clear, however, whether the rollback would also apply to children covered by the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities, though government sources claim the definition of PWD Act is large enough to cover students with all disabilities.

Taking the rollback decision today, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said, “This decision has been taken as a positive incentive and as part of the government’s policy towards greater encouragement and maintenance of differently abled children.”Certain parents of a disabled child, however, ask, “Why did they raise the fee in the first place if they were so concerned about the welfare of the differently abled?”

The said hike (from Rs 580 to over Rs 1,000) was effected in the name of “Vidyalaya Vikas Nidhi and tuition charges” from October 1 - a move parents see as unnecessary considering KVs are centrally funded and the school management does not have the right to change fee structures.

In any case, the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan norms specify that these schools should not collect tuition fee from class I to VIII and till class XII for SC and ST students, though on other category of students, the norms are silent.

As for the government, it justified the hike citing the sixth Pay Commission recommendations that led to every Central government employee getting more - Rs 1,000 as education expenditure per child. Parents, however, argued against the fee hike, saying the KV Sangathan was not competent to change fee, given the central funding of schools.

New Delhi, October 15
The AICC leadership has not taken kindly to the war of words its leaders in Haryana have launched against each other. The party’s central leadership is miffed over the verbal tirade initiated by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s cabinet colleagues Birender Singh and Kiran Chowdhry, who till the last minute of assembly polling were busy berating the Chief Minister in an attempt to settle scores with him. And in the post-election scenario, the two groups are now busy lobbying for the most coveted post in the state.

A top Congress leader, while refusing to comment on whether the party intended cautioning those indulging in the sparring, confirmed that the high command was upset over open groupism that could have also ended up harming the party’s prospects in the elections.

While in normal circumstances such incidents would have gone unnoticed, sources say that with some adverse reports flowing in from the state, worries are setting in. “There was a clear message from Congress president Sonia Gandhi, asking dissenting party members to set aside their personal ambitions for the larger good of the party but some leaders have preferred to ignore this direction,” the senior party leader said.

The simmering discontent in Haryana Congress is nothing new. However, in these elections the rift between Hooda and his detractors within the party became more pronounced after Birendra Singh, Kiran Chaudhary and Union Ministers Selja and Rao Inderjit Singh openly joined hands in opposing him. In fact, it was the sharp difference of opinion among various factions of the state Congress that prevented the High Command from releasing the entire list of names of nominees in one go.

Mumbai, October 15
Despite the exit polls predicting a slight advantage to the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine when results to the Maharashtra assembly are declared next week, politicians are expecting the verdict to throw up a hung house.

The two major groupings in Maharashtra - Congress-NCP and Shiv Sena-BJP - are busy wooing the smaller parties and several independent candidates who are expected to win in order to shore up their numbers.

The smaller parties that are expected to win several seats include Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Peasants and Workers Party, Republican Party of India, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana and Hitendra Thakur's Bahujan Vikas Aghadi.

"The Independents and smaller parties would emerge as kingmakers if they get 50-60 seats in the 288-member assembly," admits a senior Congress party leader. Many politicians, including several in the Congress-NCP combine, feel that the exit polls conducted by media

outlets may not be accurate. Political leaders say, many analysts are simply extrapolating Lok Sabha results into the assembly elections and thus their findings may not be accurate.

A few of the smaller parties like the MNS and the RPI have already indicated that they are open for business and would join hands with whoever offers them the best terms. And they are being wooed aggressively. "We are open to tying up with the MNS," BJP leader Vinod Tawde said shortly after the exit polls came out. According to Tawde, the Sena and the BJP would adjust with the MNS if Raj can up with enough MLAs to keep the Congress-NCP out of power.

The Congress and the NCP too may not be allergic to Raj Thackeray after all despite protestations by the former. While the Congress has said it would not have any truck with MNS, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar expressed his willingness to tie up with Raj Thackeray before backtracking.

The two parties are wooing NCP rebels though they may go with the highest bidder. Among the more prominent rebels being wooed include former minister Sunil Deshmukh who is contesting against Rajendra Shekawat, son of President Pratibha Patil. Congress sources here feel that Deshmukh stands a very good chance of defeating Shekawat for the Amravati assembly seat.

However nothing is certain till the last minute. Observers point out to the election results of 1994 when the rebels from the Congress joined hands with the Shiv Sena and BJP to form the government despite all efforts to woo them.

New Delhi, October 15
First official estimate of sown area and production of crops during the kharif season, which otherwise is out by September, has got delayed this year, probably due to the drought that hit several states.

Officially called ‘first advance estimates’, the process is necessary to form a strategy for different crops during the Rabi season that follows kharif. In fact, this year’s first advance estimate is even more significance as summer-sown crops, mainly paddy, were affected adversely by the dry monsoon.

Notably, the first estimate of the kharif production usually coincides with the National Conference of Agriculture for Rabi in September and helps to form the strategy for crops during rabi.

Various state governments give rough assessment of their respective kharif crops, which are based on reports from field officers of respective agriculture departments.

They are mainly guided by visual observations, which in turn are validated on the basis of inputs from the proceedings of Crop Weather Watch Group (CWWG) meetings and other feedback such as relevant availability of water in major reservoirs, availability and supply of important inputs, including credit to farmers, rainfall, temperature and irrigation.

For its part, the Centre has passed the buck to states for not being able to submit details of expected output in time this year, mainly blaming the drought and later floods. Agriculture Ministry officials say drought-affected states and those hit by floods, like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and border areas of Maharashtra, could not provide figures in time.

Mumbai, October 15
A series of murders, mainly of young women, over the past few days in Goa has given rise to suspicion that a serial killer may be on the prowl in the tourist state. According to information available from the Goan authorities, all victims seem to be of Indian origin though the identities of many of the victims are yet to be confirmed.

According to the Goa Police, four of the victims were from a single family and comprised of a woman, her companion and her two children.

One person has been arrested in connection with the case and investigations are pending.

Of the remaining cases, three women were murdered and the lower part of their bodies burnt giving rise to suspicion that they may have been raped and attempts made to destroy the evidence. “We are still investigating the killings and we cannot say if the murders were the work of a serial killer,” Superintendent of Police Atmaram Deshpande told reporters in Panjim.

The police is also on the lookout for 10 women missing across Goa for the past month.

However, none of the bodies found match the description of the missing women, according to the police.

The victims are said to be approximately between 16 and 60 years of age.

According to the police, a father and son duo were being questioned after the son’s phone number was found in the mobile phone records of a victim. The 16-year-old girl was strangled to death.