New Delhi, August 24
On Raksha Bandhan today when the Delhi Metro expected to register a higher ridership as compared to normal days, its services were disrupted for close to two hours as a train got stuck in a tunnel due to a technical snag.

Metro services were hit on Line-2 (Central Secretariat to Jehangirpuri) from 11:30 am to 1:15 pm when a train approaching Rajiv Chowk Metro station from Jehangirpuri developed a technical snag related to its pantograph (equipment that draws power from the overhead electrification line) and stopped midway.

As the train stopped in a tunnel, passengers were stuck without proper air-conditioning for nearly an hour. Some alleged that there was no sign of relief even after one and a half hours.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) spokesperson said the affected train was withdrawn from services around 1:15 pm with the help of another train. All 500 passengers travelling by it were deboarded at Rajiv Chowk Metro station.

"It was a relief once we deboarded at Rajv chowk Metro station. But the station was overcrowded.

Announcements were being made about the resumption of services, but there was no relief until 2 pm. Passengers on Line-3 were also denied entry to the underground station. There was utter chaos and panic gripped everybody," said Krishna Golcha, an outstation student of Delhi University who had boarded the faulty train.

"The train was stuck in a tunnel while approaching a busy station due to a technical fault. We had to go to Yamuna Vihar for Raksha Bandhan, but we could not reach Connaught Place before 2 pm. The entire plan had to be cancelled," lamented Ritu Sharma, an IT professional who was stuck in the Metro snag.

Even as connectivity got badly hit, normal services on the corridor resumed later, added DMRC spokesperson Anuj Dayal.

During the affected period, trains were run in short loop between Jehangirpuri and Kashmere Gate. Two trains were run in short loop between Jehangirpuri and Rajiv Chowk as soon as train having defect was withdrawn. To clear Raksha Bandhan rush, two additional trains are being run on Line -2 today.

The delay also overshadowed DMRC's plans to run 180 extra trips on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan today. Every year the Delhi Metro carries at least 1 lakh additional passengers on the festival.

New Delhi, August 24
It was a wet Raksha Bandhan day for Delhiites today as relatives found it hard to commute in endless traffic jams. Heavy downpour in the first half of the day derailed Rakhi plans for most people.

The Metrological department recorded 6.3-mm of rain from 8.30 am to 5:30 pm today. The Capital has received 20.8-mm rainfall in the last 24 hours.

"No private cabs were available in the morning hours. Even autorickshaws were hard to find. The roads were chocked with vehicles. The rains only added to the misery. It was impossible to travel before 1 or 2 in the afternoon, without getting stuck on roads for long hours," said Revati, who could not make it to her cousin's place in Gurgaon for Rakhi.

According to the weather office, the national Capital has received 676.6-mm of rain since July 5.

The maximum temperature settled at 26.6 degrees Celsius today, while the minimum was recorded at 23.7 degrees Celsius. The humidity levels oscillated between 94 and 77 per cent.

"The skies are likely to remain cloudy and the city might see more showers over the next 24 hours. A couple of spells might be heavy. While the maximum temperature is expected to settle at 28 degrees Celsius, the minimum is expected to settle at 24 degrees Celsius," said an IMD official.

New Delhi, August 24
A delegation of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) today inspected the Yamuna and the flood-affected areas located near the river.

The delegation included mayor Prithvi Raj Sawhney, Standing Committee chairman Yogendra Chandolia, Leader of the House Subhash Arya and municipal commissioner K.S. Mehra. They visited Nigam Bodh Ghat and nearby areas on the banks of the river in motorboats.

The mayor directed the officials to check mosquito-breeding due to stagnation of water.

"We have directed the officials to get the area fogged regularly. We have also directed the officials of public health department to check the breeding of mosquitoes, especially in the areas near the Yamuna which are flooded," he said.

Sawhney said that the Delhi government is arranging for the relocation of the flood-hit people while the MCD is keeping a tab on the spread of any disease.

Criticising the Delhi government, Subhash Arya said that the government could not clean the Yamuna even after spending crores of rupees for years.

New Delhi, August 24
The city today reported 43 cases of dengue, the maximum for a day in this season, a clear indication to the aggravation of the disease as rains combined with the debris across the city pile up misery for the people.

The cumulative number of dengue victims has reached 496 in the city.

The fear of dengue is driving people suffering from fever to the hospitals and doctors say it is bothering them as it leads to congestion.

Doctors say that a majority of dengue victims need not rush to the hospital as the disease is self-limiting.

“Ninety per cent of total patients who are cases of dengue do not need treatment in hospital. Only those with active bleeding and platelet count below 20,000 require admission, while others can be managed with conservative treatment at home,” said Dr Randeep Guleria, senior doctor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

Among the blood samples sent for diagnosing dengue by the medicine emergency of the LNJP hospital today, as many as 15 cases came out to be positive against the average seven to eight cases seen until Sunday.

“A majority of the patients coming to us these days are appearing to be potential cases of dengue and almost every third patient is coming with fibril illness, but not all cases are of dengue. We have sent 40 samples for serology tests till early evening and most of them came to us having fever for three to four days,” said a doctor from the medicine emergency, preferring to remain unidentified.

“We refer those showing symptoms to the OPD and if it is closed, we give them fluids to replenish the body fluids in the form of juice or saline. Awareness about the disease has increased,” said a doctor on duty.

Explaining the spectrum of the vector-borne disease, medical director of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Dr R K Ganjoo added, “The cases fall under a wide range, starting with high fever, body ache and muscular pain, with marginal fall in the platelet count on the milder side. On the other extreme, the disease manifests itself through red spots/ blemishes on the skin, haemorrhagic fever leading to dengue shock syndrome followed by bleeding complications.” 

New Delhi, August 24
As rains lashed the north India and the city, the water level in the Yamuna rose further today, aggravating the flood situation in the low-lying areas of the capital situated near the river and exacerbating apprehensions about the coming days as more rains are expected.

Many people living near the river were evacuated from their houses to safe places. Many of them have been put up in tents erected by the government, said chief engineer, irrigation and flood department, V. P. S. Tomar.

Despite the government claims of taking all measures to deal with the situation, many in the tents alleged that they were hardly being taken care of.

"My grandson is running fever. I have been asking all officials to do something but there is no medical facility," Asha said.

The water level in Yamuna today reached 205.62 cm that is 79 cm above the danger level. Tomorrow the flood situation may worsen as this morning Haryana has released 1.5 lakh cusec of water that would reach Delhi by the next morning, he said.

Tomar said that so far only those who lived in the river bed are affected.

The people living in other areas are safe and there is not an alarming situation for them. So far no flood alert has been issued in the National Capital Region.

The authorities said even if rising water levels breach the Yamuna's banks, only those living along the river would have to be evacuated

Some families living in low-lying areas in East Delhi have been evacuated. If required, relief camps will be set up to provide shelter to the affected people. Water has entered in the houses located adjacent to the river near ISBT Kashmiri Gate. The residents have left their houses.

Relief work has been intensified in the areas of Wazirabad, Usmanpur, Garhi Mandu, Akshardham Temple, Chilla, Batla House and Madanpur Khadar.

Ac senior officer said that till last year there was no population in river bed in Madanpur Khadar. But this year farmers had disposed of their land to the poor people who needed residential accommodation. Had the police stopped their construction work, they would have not become victim of the flood.

In Batla House also people have purchased land that was given on lease to farmers. Flood water entres their houses every year. This year so far more than 25 families have evacuated their houses. They live in tents. 

New Delhi, August 24
The Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (CGOC) Tuesday launched the uniform for volunteers for the Oct 3-14 Games.

The uniform for the volunteers consists of two pairs of polo ‘T-shirts, lower tracks and socks, a cap, a pair of shoes, one sipper bottle, a rain jacket and a waist pouch.

Basic colours of the volunteer’s uniforms are vibrant red and contrasting white. Lower track has a red base with white stripe on the sides with Delhi 2010 word mark. The polo “T-shirts has a white base and a red patch work with the Delhi 2010 logo and word mark. To distinguish the roles of various volunteers, polo “T-shirts of sports specific volunteers have been given a blend of yellow colour on the patch. In case of medical volunteers white colour will be more pre-dominant. Red colour of the lower tracks will be common to all the volunteers.

“Time is short. Only 22 days are left for the Games Village to open. We have launched the uniform for the volunteers and we will be making many more announcements in the days to come,” said Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi.

The CGOC has picked 30,000 volunteers for the Commonwealth Games. The number was 15,000 at the Melbourne edition. — IANS

New Delhi, August 24
All the parties today filed their nominations for this year’s Delhi University Students’ Union elections. Today was the last day of filing the nominations. As per schedule, the election will take place on September 3. Candidates can withdraw their names from the election by August 26.

Nominations of nearly 53 candidates were accepted today for the post of president.

For the post of vice-president, 47 candidates made through the preliminary scrutiny. For secretary, 47 nominations and for the post of joint secretary, 42 nominations were accepted.

The candidates are now required to fulfill basic formalities, including submission of DU identity card and a bank draft of Rs 500 as security deposit in favor of the treasurer, Delhi University Students’ Union by Wednesday up to 3.00 pm, failing which the candidature will be cancelled assuming that that the candidate has withdrawn his/her candidature.

Nominees who wish to withdraw their candidature can write to the chief returning officer. Every year, a number of candidates drop out and withdraw their nominations.

The trend this year will only be clear on August 26, when the deadline for all the formalities ends and the final list is out.

New Delhi, August 24
With the government struggling to get the infrastructure ready before the Commonwealth Games, scores of determined students from different universities have stepped in to clean the Yamuna river in their own way before the Games.

They are busy planting saplings along the river banks, clearing the refuse piled along the river and holding street plays and workshops to create awareness on cleaning the Yamuna.

Gautam Kapoor, a campaigner and activist, said, “Initially we will be cleaning the banks of the river at Nizamuddin, Wazirabad and Kudusia. Later, we will try and get the saplings planted all along the river banks across the city. We will also be conducting workshops and street plays. We intend to involve school students in our ‘Clean the Yamuna’ drive.”

Students representing several universities like Delhi University, Jamia Millia Islamia and Jawaharlal Nehru University have gathered for the drive.

They launched the ‘Walk for Yamuna’ campaign last week and held a tree plantation drive at Wazirabad in north Delhi. Students plan to continue the clean-up drive even after the Games.

Activists also held a signature campaign that involved large numbers of students in Delhi University’s north campus last week. Campaigners are also planning to hold a signature campaign with the help of volunteers from different universities that will cover all the schools and educational institutes in the Capital.

Noida, August 24
Students of Noida PG Degree College today held a protest against the college administration, demanding an increase in the number of seats.

The protesting students did not allow the principal and staff members to come out. It was only after the police reached the spot that the situation was brought under control.

Noida, August 24
A woman patient who went missing from the ESI Hospital on Saturday was reportedly found dead at Sector 33 gate— more than a kilometer from the hospital, on Sunday.

On Monday, her husband lodged a police complaint against the hospital charging it with negligence.

The ESI Hospital director, Dr B.J.S. Sarang, has ordered an inquiry today.

Sarang said, “Shiela Devi (31) wife of Braj Nath, a resident of Ghaziabad, was admitted to the hospital on Saturday around 7 am with complaints of vomiting and dysentery. She was pregnant. Soon she developed labour pain and was rushed to the labour room. She gave birth to a boy at 10:30 am.”

“The child was underweight and had breathing problem. He was referred to the Pushpanjali Hospital in Ghaziabad. Braj Nath accompanied the child. The woman was left alone in the hospital. Her husband had, however, informed her that the child was being shifted to other hospital,” said Sarang.

“After Braj Nath left, the woman went out without informing the staff. She was brought back by the guards. But she persisted that she wanted to go home. She was told that she was not medically fit and hence, could not be discharged. On her repeated requests, the nurse got Braj Nath’s signature and allowed her to go at 1:15 pm on Saturday,” said Sarang.

Allowing an unfit patient to go without an attendant is unethical. “In such a situation, the hospital should not have allowed her to go on her own. Medical ethics say that such a patient should be counseled and kept in the hospital till her husband or other attendant arrives,” Indian Medical Association (Noida) president Dr S.P. Sharma said.

“The victim’s husband has lodged a complaint against the hospital doctors for negligence. As the woman’s postmortem report could not point out the cause of her death, her Viscera will be sent to laboratory. The doctors and para medical staff have been questioned,” said DSP V.C. Tripathi.

New Delhi, August 24
Some unidentified men allegedly barged into the house of an NRI in the Sainik Farms area of south Delhi and decamped with around 15,000 euro yesterday.

Germany-based NRI Devender Nirman Singh reported the incident. The brother of Singh's domestic help has been arrested in this regard.

According to the police, the burglary took place when Singh had gone to meet her brother-in-law in the other part of Sainik Farms. However, the burglar(s) could not find other valuables or cash in the house, said a police official.

"The victim had gone to meet her brother-in-law when the incident took place. She suspects that the thief knew the place where she had kept the euros. However, around 4,000 pounds kept in the almirah was found intact. Perhaps, the burglar could not find them," said a police official from the Sainik Farms police post. He added that the NRI owned several hotels in Germany and had recently returned from a trip to Germany and England.

The police has arrested Sanjeev, brother of Singh's domestic help, and is interrogating him. "Sanjeev has a criminal record and often visited the victim's house. We are investigating the matter," the official said.