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Cong to go with Marandi in J’khand
Noted journalist Prabhash Joshi passes away
Obituary |
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Bypoll in UP, WB today
MC Poll
Rajiv Gandhi’s close aide Gopi Arora dead
Stability in Pak vital: PM
Amar booked for ‘hurting’ religious sentiments
Teachers’ Recruitment
6 booked for AICTE norms’ violation
Punjab inspired TN’s farm growth: Karunanidhi
Tribal students gang up for early poll
Cong-NCP ministry to be sworn in today
Cong uneasy over Kripashanker’s ‘Koda link’
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Cong to go with Marandi in J’khand
New Delhi, November 6 An announcement to this effect was made by senior Congress leader K Keshav Rao, also the AICC in charge of Jharkhand. Accompanied by former BJP leader and JVM chief Babulal Marandi, Rao said the Congress had decided to leave 19 constituencies in the 81-member House to its new ally. Besides there will be “friendly fights” on seven seats, the names of which Rao did not specify. However, for the JVM, which had been demanding at least 26 constituencies from the Congress, it is a definite climbdown to get just 19 seats. The seven seats on which there will be “friendly fights” are those on which a consensus could not be reached between the two parties. In between there was also speculation that Congress might fall back on JMM’s Shibu Soren. In fact, the Congress decision to go with the JVM is being considered a major setback for the JMM as well as the RJD. The JMM, led by former Chief Minister Shibu Soren, is part of the Congress-led UPA. However, a section in the Congress was against a tie-up with the JMM as it feared that any alliance with the party would give the impression that Soren was the chief ministerial candidate and alienate non-tribal voters. RJD chief Lalu Prasad had also met Congress president Sonia Gandhi for a “secular alliance in Jharkhand” but could not evoke a favourable response from her. Rao said the decision to go with Marandi was primarily because the Congress felt that together they could provide a clean, stable, inclusive government to a state which has had six Chief Ministers in eight years. “The state was facing instability.... There have been six Chief Ministers in eight years. We will provide a stable government, declare a war on corruption and bring in inclusive growth and development," Rao said. On why the Congress failed to provide good governance despite supporting the JMM, Rao said there was a difference between “being in the government and supporting it from outside”. “The Congress has never been in the government in Jharkhand nor headed one,” he specified. Meanwhile, Marandi said he was not hankering after power and had decided to go with the Congress only to provide stability to the state. Marandi, considered as a person with a clean image, had headed a BJP government but had parted ways after his removal from the post. Before making a formal announcement, Rao and AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik met the Congress president. The Congress has already announced the names of 49 candidates and the JVM has finalised nine candidates for the 81-member House.
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Noted journalist Prabhash Joshi passes away
New Delhi, November 6 Joshi, who introduced the simple and colloquial style of writing in Hindi journalism when he launched Jansatta as a publication of the Indian Express Group here in 1983, was a great cricket buff. A Gandhian at heart, Joshi started his career in journalsim from Nai Duniya in his hometown Indore. He was earlier involved with the Sarvodya movement. He is survived by his wife Usha, two sons - Sandeep Joshi, a Ranji Trophy player, and Sopan - and daughter Sonal. His body would be taken for cremation tomorrow by a chartered plane to Indore. He retired as editor of Jansatta in 1995 and since then was a consulting editor of the paper and wrote his weekly column for the paper. He was watching the India-Australia match when he felt a little uneasy and retired to his bedroom. A little later he developed chest pain and was rushed to the hospital where he breathed his last. Noted cricket writer Pradeep Magazine mentioned how he owed his entire career to Joshi. He was employed in the Indian Express, Chandigarh, by Joshi and then constantly encouraged him. Indian Express’ editor-in-chief Shekhar Gupta too got his first break as a journalist in Chandigrah thanks to Joshi. Joshi had a very acute and sharp political understanding. He took active part in the campaign against Emergency, which brought him in close contact with JP and the Indian Express baron Ramnath Goenka. The launch of Jansatta by him in 1983 created reverberations in the world of Hindi journalism when he rejected the existing pedantic style of Hindi writing to introduce the colloquial writing style, later adopted by many a publication. Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee paid him glowing tributes. In his statement issued here today, Vajpayee has stated, “Joshi belonged to that generation of journalists who were concerned about the common man, in brief the issues concerning the people of India.”His death has also been condoled by the Editors’ Guild of India. In a joint statement, its president Rajdeep Sardesai and general secretary Sachidanand Murthy have described Joshi as an “active member of the guild, who had strived hard throughout his career in journalism to uphold freedom of the press and worked for perfecting professional standards.
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Obituary After spending 10 years at New Friends Colony, New Delhi, I chose to live in Vasundhara Colony, Gaziabad, as Prabhashji had just shifted to that locality. Having worked with him for 20 years, I got a chance to live with him in the same building of Jansatta Apartments. But the twists of the fate are very cruel. When the relationship was growing and taking a new shape, all of a sudden he breathed his last. Prabahsji’s death comes as a great tragedy not only for the Hindi literary world, but for a number of disciples like me. His presence was a big support for us. Evaluation of Prabhashji’s work and contribution will be done in the coming times. But it was his concern for the language that impressed me the most. He gave the Hindi journalism a new meaning. His experimental attitude was visible during “Prajaneeti” and “Aaspas” days too, but it was with the launch of the “Jansatta” that his new flavour of the language came to the fore. He impressed upon his colleagues to write for the common man: simple, straight and to the point. He was a fan of poet Bhawani Babu. Those who have heard him speaking in gatherings know that his spoken word could easily be translated on paper and published ditto. This was a beginning of meaningful journalism in Hindi. It is regretted that this could not be continued for a long time. The use of colourless language and moral degradation in journalism pained him the most. I remember well that once late Rajendra Mathur, while taking me to his residence, smilingly said: “I, in fact, want to do that (work) in my newspaper which Jansatta is accomplishing. At that time I was working in “Rajasthan Patrika” and Mathur Sahib was impressing upon to come to Delhi. The best of Prabhashjis work in the field of language has been on politics of communalism. The clarity and boldness with which he wrote on bloodshed in the name of Hindutva and vote politics, who else could have written? He was a follower of Gandhiji and bitter foe of politics of religion. He wrote a lot against it. In this, he never feared. Neither had he bodyguards, nor he restrained from saying in a meeting what he wrote. An incident of his fearless style will be topical here. I was the then editor of Jansatta’s Chandigarh edition. Terrorism was at peak. Ultras declared a code of dictatorship for journalists. I reached Delhi and talked to him. He said, “To hell with them (terrorists). When we are bringing out a paper from that place (Chandigarh), we should remain prepared to pay for its price, too. And he threw the copy of the code into the dustbin. As is the case with great personalities, Prabhashji was full of life. He came to terms with the beauty of music and cricket. He listened to Kumar Gandharva’s renditions with all its depth. He was an ardent cricket lover who viewed matches by remaining awake throughout the night. His demise, in true sense of the word, has created a vacuum at the top. |
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Bypoll in UP, WB today
Lucknow/Kolkata, November 6 The major battle is at Firozabad where it now appears to be a direct fight between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress. To check factional infighting among the many aspirants to the seat after Akhilesh Yadav resigned, party president Mulayam Singh Yadav had nominated his daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav as a consensus candidate. The electorate of this Yadav-dominated seat openly admits at being angry with Akhilesh for dumping them despite their ensuring his victory. They also see no advantage in adding one more member to the Opposition benches of the Lok Sabha at this point. The other 11 byelections to the Vidhan Sabha have mainly been necessitated after MLAs were elected to the Lok Sabha during the general election. The Congress had two of these seats - Padrauna, which had been represented by Minister of State for Roads RPN Singh, and Jhansi that was held by Minister of State for Rural Development Pradeep Jain ‘Aditya’. In Padrauna, the minister’s mother Rani Mohini Singh is the Congress nominee fighting against BSP’s state president Swami Prasad Maurya who had lost to the son in May.It remains to be seen if the Rahul Gandhi magic would be visible in the assembly polls helping the party improve its tally and morale. The SP has most at stake. The party has put its entire might to retain, if not increase, its tally to remain relevant in the state in the run up to the general election in 2012. For the BSP, this is once again testing waters to see if its social engineering is working and if its Dalit voter is still supportive. Meanwhile, in Kolkata, the CPM will have another test of their popularity tomorrow when people will exercise their franchise. The byelections are being held in these seats, following the victory of the sitting MLAs in the last Lok Sabha polls. But the election in the Belgachia (east) will be held due to death of incumbent Subhas Chakraborty of the CPI(M), the then Sports and Transport Minister. The TMC and the Congress would be fighting jointly against the CPI(M). Of the 10 seats, the TMC fielded their candidates in seven seats, while in the remaining three in north Bengal, the Congress candidates would be fighting against the left parties with the TMC’s support.
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MC Poll
Hyderabad, November 6 Along with Srinivas, the president of the party’s GHMC unit and Health Minister D Nagender, Home Minister P Sabitha Indra Reddy, Rajya Sabha member V Hanumantha Rao and legislator P Shankar are facing bribery allegations.Angry Congress workers held demonstrations at the residences of Srinivas and Nagender, burnt their effigies and stoned the state party headquarters “Gandhi Bhavan”. Raising slogans against the leaders involved in selection of candidates, they said genuine workers were ignored while the ticket was given to those who paid kickbacks. The infighting took an ugly turn on the last day of the filing of nominations with rival groups coming to blows and the charges of kickbacks in distribution of tickets flying thick and fast. As reports of self-immolation bids by angry party workers poured in from all over the city, Nagender announced his resignation from the party post.
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Rajiv Gandhi’s close aide Gopi Arora dead
New Delhi, November 6 Arora was from the 1957 batch of the Indian Administrative Service. He was Special Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) before becoming Secretary in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry. Arora was also Finance Secretary in 1989-90. Arora was also instrumental in efforts that led to signing of the Rajiv-Longowal Accord and the subsequent accession to power by the Akali Dal. He was also among those named in the initial CBI chargesheets in the Bofors kickback case. After his retirement Arora was on the board of several companies and was the director of the Jaypee Group at the time of his death. He also served as an executive director representing India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka at the International Monetary Fund in Washington from 1990-1993.The cremation will be held tomorrow.
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Stability in Pak vital: PM
New Delhi, November 6 “What happens in Afghanistan and Pakistan affects us intimately more than any other country in the world,” Singh said. He was addressing a joint press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso at the conclusion of the 10th India-European Union (EU) Summit here. Manmohan Singh said both India and the EU had discussed the situation in the region, including Pakistan and Afghanistan, at length. The two sides expressed concern over the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan and agreed that all parties concerned should continue the fight against terrorism. Singh hoped the international community would stay the course in meeting the problems confronting Afghanistan. “India and the EU stand united in combating terrorism which is a threat to international peace and stability.” The PM said the two sides had also agreed to expand their cooperation in countering terrorism by accelerating negotiations between Europol, the EU’s nodal criminal intelligence agency and the Indian authorities concerned. Replying to a question, he said he had not received any information from Pakistan over a reported Lashkar-e-Toiba plot to attack the National Defence College (NDC) in New Delhi. He also stated that he had taken up with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao reports that China was constructing a project over the Brahmaputra that could affect the flow of water in India when the two recently met in Thailand on the fringes of the ASEAN Summit. Asked about India’s stand on climate change now that the Copenhagen Summit was just a month away, the PM said New Delhi has so far not reached a stage where it could quantify its carbon emission targets. The Swedish Prime Minister strongly favoured India’s cooperation in forging a consensus at the Copenhagen meet. “We have identified the costs of mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. We need 100 billion euros by the time we come to 2020. We have acknowledged there are ambitious plans in India, but we need action from everyone.”
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Amar booked for ‘hurting’ religious sentiments
Lucknow, November 6 During a meeting in Lucknow Singh reportedly equated the rebel BJP leader and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh with Hurr ibn Yazid Al-Riyahi, who initially opposed Prophet Mohammad's grandson Hussain but later repented and joined his party. A case under Section 153 A of the Indian Penal Code had been registered against Amar Singh for hurting religious sentiments of the Shia community. — TNS
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Teachers’ Recruitment
Kolkata, November 6 Yesterday, the Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal suggested a three-point formula for resolving the problems of the recruitment process of 70,000 PTTI-trained teachers in the state, who had been declared “under-qualified” since the state-approved institutes from where they had obtained their degree/diploma had no legal sanction. According to the formula, these teachers will have to undergo a short-bridge course for qualifying themselves for the primary teacher’s jobs. Sibal, yesterday, asked Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee to stop the recruitment of new teachers before resolving the problems the PTTI-trained teachers. After obtaining several experts’ opinion, he had prepared the compromise formula and sent to the state government for its implementation before making any new recruitment since the new recruitment at this stage was bound to create some more problems, Sibal warned the Chief Minister. Last evening, the matter was discussed at the CPM’s office at Alimuddion Street in the presence of the Chief Minister and party secretary Biman Bose. And today, State Minister for School Education Partha De announced that the government’s decision of ignoring the Centre’s restriction of the new recruitments. He said they were morally bound to immediately fill the posts of 56,000 primary teachers, now lying vacant in the districts. He said Sibal’s compromise formula was quite ambiguous and it would not solve the PTTI-trained teachers’ problems. Hence, there could be no reason why they should stop the recruitment of new teachers as per the state government’s recruitment guidelines. Incidentally, when the PTTI-trained teachers learnt that they had obtained diploma/degree from several “fake institutes”, which had the state’s approval, they organised large-scale protests and demonstrations, including the gherao of the CPM ministers and other party leaders. Some 14 teachers had also committed suicide. The aggrieved teachers were on a mass hunger strike during their agitations, which, however, had been withdrawn at the intervention of Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi and Union Ministers Pranab Mukherjee and Mamata Banerjee. They had negotiated with the HRD Minister on several occasions and accordingly, he had come out with the compromise formula.
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6 booked for AICTE norms’ violation
New Delhi, November 6 “The case has been registered against Convenor of an expert committee of AICTE, New Delhi; Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, NIT, Kurukshetra; Assistant Professor, Thapar University, Patiala; Professor, Department of Computer Science, GKV, Hardwar; Chairman-cum-Managing Director of Hyderabad-based Sanskrit College Trust and Honrary Secretary of Hyderabad-based Institute of Technology and Science,” said CBI Spokesman Harsh Bhal today. The six were booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. — TNS
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Punjab inspired TN’s farm growth: Karunanidhi
Chennai, November 6 Recalling his visit to Punjab during his first tenure as Chief Minister in 1969, Karunanidhi said "I had an opportunity to visit the Punjab Agricultural University for inaugurating a huge building in November, 1969, on an invitation from Gurnam Singh, the then Chief Minister and my good old friend. That was the main cause which made me to start this agricultural university in Coimbatore". Intense research activities were carried out in the Coimbatore Agricultural University to increase the cropping density and intensive agricultural development programme was implemented to improve the food-grain production, he said. Karunanidhi said all those efforts resulted in increasing total food grain production from 54 lakh tonnes in 1967 to 72 lakh tonnes in 1976. The food grain production in 2008-09 had risen to 91 lakh tonnes and the rice productivity had increased from 1450 kilo per hectare to 3450 kilo, he said while presiding over the inaugural function of the fourth National Conference on Krishi Vigya Kendras, at the textile city of Coimbatore. Striking a personal chord with Union Minister for Agriculture Sharad Pawar, who inaugurated the Karunanidhi, said "though my health condition does not permit me long journeys I have come here from Chennai, mainly because of the kind and affectionate invitation extended to me personally by Pawarji". The Chief Minister advocated new agricultural technologies to increase productivity, since the cultivable area was slowly shrinking due to industrialisation and urbanisation. "Although we have attained a good position in the total production of food grains especially in rice and millets, we still have to improve our productivity in case of pulses and oil-seeds. To achieve productivity, farmers should be trained and encouraged by the scientists to adopt latest technologies", he said. The survival and well-being of a nation depended much on the sustainable development of its natural resources. The available resources and lands should be suitably managed to meet the social, economical and cultural needs of present and future generation, he said. "This is where the scientist community plays an important role in transforming the Government’s policy into reality. The continuous growth of the Krishi Vigyan Kendras is dedicated to the transfer of newly-developed technologies to the rural masses", he added. In the three-day conference organised by Indian Council of Agricultural Research and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, scientists of 569 Krishi Vigyan Kendras located all over India are taking part.
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Tribal students gang up for early poll
Guwahati, November 6 These tribal students organisations, namely - All Bodo Students Union (ABSU), All Rabha Students Union (ARSU), Takam Mishing Poreen Kebang (TMPK), All Tiwa Students Union (ATSU), All Dimasa Students Union (ADSU), All Assam Sonowal Kachari Students Union (AASKSU), All Deuri Students Union (AADSU), Garo Students Union of Assam Zone - have formed a common programme to press for their demands for election to tribal councils. A spokesman of the ABSU informed that a delegation comprising representatives of all concerned tribal students unions will submit a memoranda to the Prime Minister, Home Minister, Home Secretary and Chief Minister in December this year on the fundamental problems facing by the people of the state and tribal people in particular. The state government has allowed almost all the tribal autonomous councils -- Rabha Hasong, Mishing Autonomous Council, Tiwa Autonomous council, Deuri Autonomous Council, Sonowal Kacharai Autonomous Council and Thengal Kachari Autonomous Council - in the state to be run by selected ad hoc councils depriving the tribal people of their political rights and autonomy in real sense of the term.
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Cong-NCP ministry to be sworn in today
Mumbai, November 6 Bhujbal, who is to continue as Deputy Chief Minister under Chavan, would be staking claim to form the government. According to Congress party sources here, the swearing-in of the new government would happen tomorrow after Governor S C Jamir formally invites them to form the government. Under the deal between the two parties, the Congress would get 23 berths, while the NCP would have 20. Important portfolios like Home, Finance and Power which the Congress sought to take away from the NCP would be retained by the junior party in government.
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Cong uneasy over Kripashanker’s ‘Koda link’
New Delhi, November 6 Some Opposition leaders have pointed out that Koda and his former Cabinet colleague Kamlesh Singh had business relationships with Kripashanker Singh, thereby demanding that his “role in the scam” be investigated. It is also being alleged that in his affidavits for 2004 and 2009 Assembly elections, Kripashanker Singh had declared different PAN card numbers. Apparently Kamlesh Singh is the father-in-law of Kripashankar Singh’s son Sanjay and thereby the connection. Sources said soon after allegations were voiced, Kripashanker Singh had met Congress President Sonia Gandhi in Delhi to explain his position. Congress spokesman Manish Tewari tried to sidestep the controversy saying that it was not his party’s policy to react on an ongoing investigation. “The law will take its own course. It is not our policy to comment on an ongoing investigation. All those who are allegedly linked to the scam will be brought to justice,” he said. Meanwhile, Chief Minister designate Ashok Chavan today met Governor SC Jamir in Mumbai and staked claim to form the next government. Chavan, accompanied by NCP legislature party leader and Deputy Chief Minister designate Chhagan Bhujbal met Jamir and handed over letters of support to stake claim. The Congress-NCP alliance has a combined strength of 144 in the 288-member House, just one short of a simple majority. Sources said Chavan had claimed support of 170 MLAs, including some independents and some other MLAs. Earlier in the day, Chavan held discussions with Congress President Sonia Gandhi. The sources said he discussed allocation of portfolios at the meeting. Senior Congress leaders AK Antony and Ahmad Patel were also present. The NCP is expected to retain the key portfolios of Home, Finance, Power and Rural Development, while the Congress could get the Public Health. The Congress is expected to land 22 ministries besides the Chief Minister and 20 NCP. There are also talks that the two allies may settle for 20 each and leave two berths for their alliance partners. While all NCP ministers are expected to take oath tomorrow, the Congress ministers are likely to be sworn in two phases. The NCP had been insisting on the older formula of parity in berth allotments.
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New Delhi, November 6
