New Delhi, October 27
The Delhi government’s move to hike fares of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses has drawn protests from daily commuters, the poor and residents’ welfare associations (RWAs), who have demanded an immediate rollback as household budgets were already stretched.

According to the proposed hike, the minimum Rs 3 ticket will now cost Rs 5, Rs 7 ticket has been upped to Rs 10, and Rs 10 fare to Rs 15. On the DTC’s air-conditioned buses, commuters will have to pay Rs 10 for a ride up to three kilometres, Rs 15 for a journey between three and 10 km, and Rs 25 to travel beyond 10 km.

“My whole monthly budget will be affected by this fare hike as I travel to Gurgaon daily for work. I already pay Rs 3,000 for rented accommodation and the high prices of vegetable and essential items add to our problems,” said Ram Naresh, a mechanic who works in a company in Gurgaon.

“Delhi government does not want poor people to live in Delhi. They will increase prices of everything including buses, Metro, water, electricity, food items like milk, vegetables and others so that no poor person would be able to survive here,” he added.

Another such protesting commuter is Rajesh Singh, who travels between Delhi and Noida daily.

“I have to go to Noida daily from Shahdara in a bus, packed like sardines, paying Rs 25 for one side. I will have to shell out about 20 per cent of my salary on commuting. Moreover, even after paying up, I will have to suffer the poor condition of the buses.”

“At present, I spend about Rs 40 daily for commuting to my office in Okhla from my residence in Shalimar Bagh. Now I will have to shell out Rs 20 more,” said Ritesh Dewan.

Seema, who works as a domestic maid in east Delhi, said: “No one is ready to help the poor. Everyone just talks about working for poor people like us. I change buses while going to work so that I pay less and save. But now my expenditure will increase. It’s already so difficult to support the family.”

Student Nikita Gupta said: “The hike would have been justified if the DTC had enough buses. The frequency of DTC buses is very bad which forces us to travel in Blueline buses where passes are not valid.”

The residents’ associations are also up in arms against the hike and demanded it be rolled back immediately.

“We have already been hit hard by inflated power bills, increasing school fees, inflation, increasing vegetables prices and now this increase in bus fares. We want an immediate rollback of the decision,” said V.K. Arora, the convener of URJA Bharat.

URJA Bharat is an association of various RWAs and has nearly 100 such associations as its members.

“The government is also considering a hike in Delhi Metro fares. Where will the public go? We have also sent a memorandum to the Delhi government and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in this regard,” said Arora.

Atul Goyal, the convenor of URJA Delhi, which has over 850 RWAs as its members, said: “It is totally an unwarranted hike. The government thinks it can do anything after its victory. People are being made to bear the DTC’s organisational losses.”

“We are organising a meeting in this regard and will soon take a decision about our next step,” Goyal added.

However, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has justified the hike.

“DTC has been striving hard to augment its city transport fleet, for which huge capital investment is required.

Further, the Delhi Transport Corporation has implemented the recommendations of the sixth pay commission, resulting in a substantial burden on its finances,” she said.

“Apart from this, the operational cost is also increasing day-by-day. Keeping all this in view, it became necessary to effect a justified hike in fare structure so that at least a portion of deficit and losses could be taken care of,” she added. — IANS

New Delhi, October 27
“What Gandhi taught us is that each one of us has a responsibility to make a difference,” said Cherie Blair, wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Cherie Blair was visiting Sanskriti School in the Capital.

She commented, “Each individual has a responsibility to make a difference and alleviate collective human suffering. We have to become the difference. If you educate one child, you will start the process that will transform their life and this in turn will help transform India.”

Cherie told schoolchildren, “There is another India out there, an India where boys and girls don’t get a single whisker of a chance, an India comprising children whose parents are not educated and who live in poverty. These are children who are denied basic education and we have to work for their living.”

Blair who happens to be president of the Loomba Trust was championing the cause of children of poor widows.

Cherie Blair gave away prizes to children at Sanskriti School. The school had organized a children’s art exhibition on the themes of peace, non-violence, tolerance and compassion.

There are about 35 million widows in India. The Loomba Trust plans to educate some 1,000 children of widows in Delhi. Sanskriti School also organized a special dance and music programme by children on the occasion.

New Delhi, October 27
As Delhi’s most ambitious Metro project plans to touch the 190-km mark by next year, passengers should be patient and give more time to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) for maintenance of such a huge structure.

Director of operations at DMRC Raj Kumar today said there were some problems faced by the organisation that were making it difficult for DMRC to operate trains on time.

Mentioning that there was 99.5 per cent punctuality rate, Raj Kumar said the trains were late maximum by one minute.

“We are one of the five most accurate Metro train services in the world by these standards,” claimed Kumar.

By next year, DMRC would have more than 200 trains with 44.3 kilometers of underground stretch. Total three kinds of rolling stock (coaches) would be running on two different tracks by the end of phase III.

“The airport line would be the fastest of them all. We are also going to recruit 6,000 more people for the maintenance of this structure,” said Kumar.

However, the Metro officials also asked the passengers to be patient as “there are certain things that we cannot change”.

The officials said if there was any disruption in the frequency of Metro trains, it was due to the maintenance work.

One of the major reasons for the prolonged maintenance work was the dust.

The Delhi Metro officials said that the Capital city was exceptionally dusty and every machine needed to be cleaned daily.

Another reason for the delay was due to crowded stations.

“A delay of one minute at crowded stations like Rajiv Chowk continues till the last station,” said Kumar.

Officials of the DMRC said that people were stealing cables every now and then because of which the train services were getting disrupted.

There were a total 53 cases of theft in the last one year.

“There will be 450 more escalators by the next year. We have the escalators getting often disrupted by curious passengers,” said A.K. Gupta, general manager (electrical), Delhi Metro.

Gupta added that there were cases of at least two or three persons falling on escalators every day.

“We fixed the lifts on the stations only for the use of handicapped and elderly passengers, but almost all passengers prefer using the lifts,” informed Gupta.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, A.K. Gupta said, was planning to introduce more escalators at Rajiv Chowk Metro station.

Noida, October 27
While the trial runs of the Metro on the Noida corridor have already started, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has said that all stations in Noida would be completely ready within the next 15 days.

The trial run up to Sector-16 would be extended up to Sector-32 in about a week’s time, while the 13.5 km-long Noida section of the Metro from Yamuna Bank to Noida, Sector 32, was likely to be opened to the public in the second week of November.

Later, the length of the route would be raised to 47.4 km by stretching it to Dwarka.

The work at Metro stations was going on at war footing, said Anuj Dayal, DMRC spokesman.

The testing of elevators at the stations will also be completed in time, said Dayal. “Before opening the facility for the public, the DMRC will ensure that it is safe,” he added.

Dayal said that the Sector -15 station was completely ready, except the elevators. While work on electric fittings was complete, some work on the stairs was yet to be finished, he said. Currently, work of covering the drains was on, he added.

Providing detail of the progress of the work at various stations, Dayal said at Sector-16 station, work on stairs was in the last leg, at Sector-18, work on stairs was on while the roadwork was in the last leg. At the botanical garden station, sewer lines were being laid and at the Golf Course station, work on stairs was on, he added.

At the Sector-32 station, the last station in Noida, one lift was operational, Dayal said. While work on stairs and grills on both sides of the station had begun, he added.

The Noida corridor will be used by an estimated 53,000 commuters everyday.

New Delhi, October 27
A number of traders from various states today protested at Jantar Mantar against ‘indiscriminatory’ policies of the Union Government towards the trading community of India. The protest was organised by the Traders’ Cell of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Shouting slogans “vyapaari rahe samman se- vyapaar kare swabhiman se,” the protesters asked the Union Government to grant special package to internal trade and impose a ban on entry of domestic corporate houses and multi-national companies in retail trade.

While calling for a major overhaul in the taxation system, the protesters criticised the government for not taking the domestic trade as one of the priorities on agenda and warned that such a situation would not be tolerated.

Addressing the protesters, Rajnath Singh termed today’s protest as symbolic and announced that the BJP would launch it as a nationwide agitation programme.

He said the government had not taken any lesson from disparities of the Value Added Tax (VAT) system and it is keen to enforcing Goods and Service Tax (GST) from April, 2010, though much work had to be done in this regard.

Lauding the role of traders in national economy, BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley said after agriculture, the retail trade is the largest sector providing employment. The self employment system is the most significant and the largest contributor to the national economy. It is a link between the producer and the consumer, which needs to be strengthened whereas the government is framing policies that are anti-internal trade.

General secretary of the All-India Confederation of Traders Association Praveen Khandelwal demanded from the government to constitute a ‘review commission’ comprising officials and trade leaders to review several Acts, laws and rules governing the trade. These have lost their significance in the present business scenario and hence, either should be abrogated or reviewed.

The multiple tax system should be converted into simple and single taxation system for better compliance, he added.

New Delhi, October 27
The country may go meatless in the days to come as butchers and meat traders in the Capital have threatened to launch a nationwide protest if their demand to shift the slaughterhouse in the heart of the city is not met.

The meat traders’ strike entered the fifth day today.

“The strike will go nationwide from October 30, if our demands are not met. We are waiting for the court’s verdict that will come tomorrow. We expect it to be in our favour. But if not, we will fight for our rights from the concerned administrative body,” said Wadood Sajid, member of the Quresh (butcher) community organisation.

Meanwhile, mutton supply in the city is almost cut off. Most hotels and restaurants serving meat dishes are resorting to alternate arrangements from Noida, Faridabad and Hapur.

However, chicken is still available, but at increased rates.

The strike that began five days ago has affected meat business in the Capital. Mutton is available in just a few shops. Mutton which was earlier priced at Rs 200 per kg is now available at Rs 250-300 per kg. While chicken costs somewhere between Rs 130-150 per kg, as against Rs 100-110 per kg earlier. Fish prices have also gone up by 40 per cent.

“We have to turn down many customers by the evening because of insufficient stock. The rates might shoot further if the strike goes nationwide and it would affect the business heavily.” said a meat shop owner at Paharganj.

Asha Singh, a housewife and resident of Lajpat Nagar, said, “Getting good, fresh mutton has become impossible these days. Whatever is available in the markets is priced exorbitantly. It is of utmost importance that a compromise is reached soon. Also, the hygienic conditions at the new abattoir should be properly examined.”

Md Aqil Qureshi, president of the New Delhi Meat Traders’s Association, said, “The strike will turn only bigger till the authorities rethink their decision. Chicken and fish traders have also offered to join the strike.”

Butchers are protesting against the shifting of the Capital’s slaughterhouse by the MCD from the heart of the city to Ghazipur. Even though the new slaughterhouse is hi-tech, it has invited criticism, as it is located next to a sanitary landfill site.

New Delhi, October 27
The crime branch of Delhi police, which has been handed over the probe into the murder of fashion designer Mona Suri, would now file the status report on October 30 as the court was adjourned today, the magistrate being on leave.

Earlier on October 6, metropolitan magistrate Munish Markan was informed the case had been handed over to the special wing. The magistrate then asked the crime branch to file its probe report on the next date of hearing.

On August 12, 2007, Mona Suri was burnt by two bikers outside her residence in Greater Kailash here. She succumbed to her injuries on October 21.

However, the police could neither nab the assailants nor establish the motive behind the murder.

Four persons, including Naveen Suri, her husband, his girlfriend Rachna and Rajiv Sharma have already undergone narco-analysis tests in the case at a laboratory in Gujarat, the police said.

Earlier, Manjeet Bawa, father of the victim, had sought speedy investigation into the case. He had approached the court with a plea to give directions for narco-test on Rachna with whom Naveen Suri allegedly had an affair.

Bawa said the probe into the case has not been completed and the delay in getting the narco-test done will prolong the proceedings.

The police had earlier told the Delhi High Court that no breakthrough had been made in the probe, and consequently, the matter has been handed over to the crime branch on September 24.

New Delhi, October 27
With dengue expanding its fold over the city, Delhi today reported 24 fresh cases of the vector-borne disease, taking the total tally to 280. Last year, 1,080 cases of dengue were reported from the city.

According to municipal health officer Dr N K Yadav, the most affected areas of the city are south, central Delhi and the areas under the jurisdiction of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC).

Yesterday, a nine-year-old boy, a resident of Pappu Colony in Rohini, succumbed to the infection at the Lok Nayak Hospital.

Yadav said to contain the spread of the disease, house-to-house inspection for mosquito breeding was being carried out and for this, the civic body had employed 3,200 workers.

“More than 400 hand-operated and 11 vehicle-mounted fogging machines are being used. There are 12 rapid-response teams on move to track houses with favourable conditions for mosquito breeding.

Over a week, 15,00 such houses have been detected and the owners prosecuted with fines up to Rs 500,” said Dr Yadav, adding that Delhiites were responsive and were taking steps to keep a clean environment in and around their houses.

New Delhi, October 27
With the arrest of a person, the police has claimed to have nabbed a cheater who has allegedly duped many people worth lakhs of rupees in Delhi and Rajasthan.

The accused Kumesh Ahmed (46), a resident of Ghaziabad, allegedly duped people on the pretext of providing them with visas and jobs in Saudi Arabia. 

Ahmed was arrested after an advocate filed a complaint against him alleging that he had duped him and many others of Rs 6 lakh by giving them false assurances of providing them with visa and job in Saudi Arabia. 

Ahmed used to run his office in the name of Moon Enterprises at Azadpur in the Capital. He gave advertisements in newspapers promising to provide visa and jobs in Saudi Arabian companies.

Noida, October 27
Finance companies have seized 700 commercial vehicles in a year as the buyers failed to pay back loans. But their permits and tax components deposited with the transport department have not been cancelled.

The buyers have reportedly not deposited the tax amounting to Rs 3,000 to Rs 6,000 in the transport department.

Many people in Noida had purchased vehicles on loans. Most of them have not paid back the installments. So the companies have seized the vehicles. Besides, the purchasers owe taxes worth lakhs of rupees to the transport department.

Meanwhile, the transport department has listed the vehicles that have been seized and the quantum of tax components that each of them owe. It is the responsibility of the companies, which recover their vehicles for default of loan installments to pay taxes on those vehicles to transport department.

But the companies have failed to deposit the tax or surrender the permits of the vehicles. No tax exemption can be allowed till their permits are surrendered, transport department officials said. They have to deposit tax for three years while surrendering permits.