New Delhi, December 20
The crime branch of the Delhi police has arrested four persons, including a doctor and two women, for allegedly being involved in running an adoption racket.

Two children have been rescued.

The gang was busted on a tip-off that a group of people was engaged in procuring infants and selling them at higher prices.

DCP (crime) Ashok Chand said that the gang used to get forged documents prepared by the arrested doctor, Dr Atul Kumar.

"We have rescued an 11-day-old girl and an eight-month-old boy from the arrested persons. They used to charge around Rs 1.8 lakh per child, of which Rs 30,000 was given to the child's parents," said Chand, adding that the arrested persons had been identified as Pawan Sharma (38), Ranjeeta Bhasin (48), Shobha Gupta and Dr Atul Kumar. They were arrested from various parts of the city.

Chand said that Sharma and Bhasin were arrested first. They were apprehended from the Shivaji Vihar area when Sharma had come to hand over an eight-month-old boy.

At their instance, Gupta and Kumar were arrested.

"Sharma told us that two months ago, a man from West Bengal had given him the baby boy. He handed over the boy to Bhasin and asked her to find a customer. He also told us that he procured the infant girl from east Delhi for Rs 30,000," Chand said.

Bhasin is also known to have been running two NGOs -- Nav Roshini Chetna Mahilla Samiti and Nav Jyoti Anathalaya -- in Raghubir Nagar from 1998. She told the police that 10 days ago, she gave an infant girl to Gupta, who too ran an NGO Child Care in Vashistha Park from 2004.

Gupta told the police that she was introduced to a woman who wanted a child and she had promised to arrange a girl child for her. She asked the woman to pay Rs 1.80 lakh for the child. She received the child from Sharma and Bhasin. Gupta took the adoptive mother to a medical centre in Prashant Vihar where Dr Atul Kumar prepared some forged documents.

The infants have been sent to SOS Upvan Home in Safdarjung Enclave.

The four arrested accused were produced before a court here, which sent the doctor to a 14-day judicial custody and the other three to police remand till December 23.

New Delhi, December 20
A businessman was shot at and robbed of Rs 40 lakh by two bike-borne assailants in the Rohini (South) area of outer district last night. According to the police, the incident took place when victim Sumit Jain was returning to his house in Sector-8, Rohini, from office in the Shiv Market area around 9 pm.

"As soon as he reached near his house, two bike-borne unidentified assailants tried to stop him. When he objected, one of the accused took out a pistol and held him hostage at gunpoint. When Sumit resisted, the robbers opened fire and managed to flee with a bag containing about Rs 40 lakh," said a police official close to investigation, adding that the victim was also hit with stones.

The assailants were on a black motorbike. Ankush, victim's neighbour who was witness to the incident, rushed to Sumit's rescue and shouted. Sumit was rushed to Mahavir Hospital from where he was referred to Ganga Ram Hospital in a critical condition.

Acting on the information, a police team reached the spot along with a forensic team that picked up samples from the crime scene.

New Delhi, December 20
The Delhi police has arrested a 60-year-old teacher of a government school in the Sri Niwaspuri area for allegedly molesting a class IV girl. The police said that Hansraj molested the girl on Saturday. He had asked her to remain in the class after dismissal as she had not completed her work. When other students left the class, he allegedly groped her and asked her not to inform her parents about it.

However, the girl informed her father about the incident and he reported the matter to the police.

The police said a case of illegal confinement, criminal intimidation and molestation has been registered against the teacher of GB Pant Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya.

The girl's family and neighbours also staged a protest outside the school, demanding strict action against the accused.

"My daughter was upset, quiet and did not want to school. Only when we enquired, she told us about the despicable behaviour of the teacher. The teacher must be sacked," the girl’s agitated father said.

New Delhi, December 20
With the problem of school dropouts worsening in the Capital, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) recently conducted a door-to-door survey in an attempt to track down students who had dropped out of school.

Around 14,000 municipal teachers were deployed by the agency for the survey which covered some 181 municipal wards.

MCD education committee chairman Mahendra Nagpal said, "There has been a problem of school dropouts from both the MCD and government schools for the past few years. We do not have the exact statistics, but the numbers are considerable. The agency recently took a decision to be serious in tackling this problem. We are taking a hands-on approach and one of the first steps in this regard has been the door-to-door survey to track down students who have dropped out."

Nagpal added, "The idea behind this survey is to find students between the age-group of 6 and 14 who dropped out and then ascertain the reasons of their dropping out. The next step will of course be to encourage these students to go back to school. We will be working closely with the parents of students who dropped out."

The MCD has come up with a scheme to help rehabilitate students who dropped out and get them back into the classrooms.

Rita Kapoor, an MCD teacher from East Delhi, said, "I participated in the survey conducted to get hold of school drop-outs. I feel that this problem cannot be solved till both the students and their parents from the economically weaker sections are not made aware of the importance of education. Many students are forced to leave school due to economic factors and till they are not dealt with, the dream of education for one and all cannot be realized."

R.C. Jain, chairman, Delhi State Public Schools Association, pointed out, "We cannot overlook the fact that economic reasons often force school students to drop out and start working. This encourages child labour and is a real problem in the economically weaker sections of society. The dream of education for all cannot be realized unless well-thought-out schemes are implemented to help improve this situation."

Ashok Pradhan, who migrated to Delhi with his family from the eastern Darjeeling hills, is a school drop-out.

He said, "I have studied till class VI in my village school near Darjeeling. Ever since coming to Delhi, I have been working in a tea shop. I would like to go back to school, but my family cannot afford this. I have two younger brothers and neither of them has been to school since we left Darjeeling. Delhi is a very expensive city, one of my brothers is a newspaper agent and the other is too young to work or go to school."

New Delhi, December 20
Two personnel of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) were allegedly killed, while two others were injured in an accident involving a government vehicle near Indira Gandhi International Airport.

According to the police, the incident was reported around 12:35 pm when a driver of vehicle belonging to the customs department lost control and rammed into the four NCB officials standing on a road curb near the office of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).

The deceased have been identified as inspector Ram Kumar Meena (55) and constable Ram Avatar (50). "The car belonged to a superintendent of the customs department. The driver Sushil lost control and rammed the vehicle into the four persons," said a police official, adding that Meena and Avatar died on the spot, while the two others were critically injured. They are undergoing treatment at a nearby hospital.

A case of negligent driving has been registered against the driver and investigation is on.

In yet another accident reported from the Chirag Dilli area of south Delhi, a driver was killed and three others were injured early this morning when their car hit an electric pole.

According to the police, the occupants of the car were under the influence of alcohol due to which the driver lost control over the vehicle. All four were rushed to the AIIMS where the driver was declared brought dead, the police said.

New Delhi, December 20
The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) has alleged that the Congress has divided the country into the poor, the common man and the minorities and has ruled the country for over 50 years by following this tactic.

It is playing the same tactic even now, but the people today are educated. They want development and understand the anti-people face of the Congress, said senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi at a joint conference with Delhi BJP president Vijendra Gupta.

Naqvi said that though the government had sacrificed the parliament session and did not allow itself to be exposed, the BJP and other allies of the NDA would apprise every person of the country about the unlimited corruption of the Congress government.

The coming days would be difficult for the Congress.

Naqvi said that in its second term, the UPA government had broken all records of corruption in the world.

Gupta said that in the Mahasangram Rally on December 22 thousands of people would gather at the Ram Lila Grounds to express their unhappiness with the Congress government. It will prove to be the last nail in the coffin of the Congress.

Vijendra Gupta said that around one dozen such rallies would be organised in the capitals of prominent states.

Both the leaders asked why the Prime Minister was afraid of Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) enquiry.

They said that the Prime Minister knew if the JPC started the enquiry, the top leaders of the Congress and the government might be exposed.

New Delhi, December 20
A young scientist from Jamia Millia Islamia, also a faculty member at the university's department of biotechnology, Dr Md Irfan Qureshi has won the first prize in the Young Scientists' Award category in the 3rd international conference on Parthenium-2010 which was held recently.

Qureshi had presented a paper on a new concept in the field of plant molecular biology titled 'Introducing the Weedomics: Understanding the Tolerance Mechanism of Weeds'.

His session was chaired by Baruch Rubin, president of the International Weed Science Society. After winning the award, Qureshi said, "I am thrilled that my research in weedomics has been recognised. This is a new field and is also my specialisation. I have been working in this area over the past few years."

The award and certificate was presented to Qureshi by Dr P.L. Gautam, chairman of the National Biodiversity Authority of India.

The organising committee of the conference appreciated the concept of weedomics and expressed that with time this branch of science would grow into an independent area.

The conference the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) and the Entemological Society of India was attended by scientists from across the world.

New Delhi, December 20
With the winter break at Delhi University just three days away, college and even department unions are busy planning Christmas and New Year bashes. While hostel parties have always been popular, day scholars who cannot be part of it have decided to go ahead and book club venues.

Most colleges compete for the most expensive bash. While last year, some colleges hosted parties with a budget of over Rs 5 lakh, this year Capitol and Fbar at the Ashok Hotel have been booked for two student parties by DU unions with a budget of around Rs 4 lakh.

"We have been approached with proposals. Due to the New Year rush, we are planning to give the venue only for a limited period. But most probably, the parties will be around New Year--before December 30," said Rahul Bhasin, club manager, Capitol.

More parties are also being planned in south Delhi by the south campus students in the first week of January. Most seniors feel that due to the Commonwealth Games this year, some parties will spring up the dull mood in the university.

Joint secretary, students' union of Ramjas College, Shibin Verghese said, "Students had to miss even the college fests this year. The chirpy mood is just not here. We are organizing this party for the college students to have a one night of absolute fun. Since the deadlines within the campus are strict, we sought a venue outside. We will be throwing the bash on 23rd night at Route-4, in Khan Market as most places were not available on December 24 and 25 nights due to Christmas."

Every year the college unions hold these parties. And the best part is that colleges compete for the best party. College dos compete on the grounds of the number of people attending the party and the expenditure.

At Hindu College, it isn't the college union, but a student Dharmesh Parekh who has organized a bash at the Capital's leading club - Agni Park Hotel. Incidentally, he is related to the club owners.

New Delhi, December 20
The Association of Surgeons of India Conference, one of the largest medical conferences of surgeons in the world with over 7,000 delegates from India and abroad attending it, ended here today after critical evaluations on surgical practices across the globe.

Panel discussion on surgical education, training and practice for the 21st century, live telecast of basic and advanced surgical procedures and sessions on innovations in surgery were some of the highlights of the conference.

"This climate of debate, discussion, live telecast of basic and advanced surgeries was a tremendous experience even for experienced surgeons and will go a long way in advancing the cause of surgery, highlighting emerging trends in surgery. This exchange of ideas will also lead to enhancing surgical acumen among doctors. We look forward to seeking out more collaborative opportunities in healthcare between India and other SAARC countries," said N.K.Pandey, president, Association of Surgeons of India.

New Delhi, December 20
The Delhi police has arrested three burglars, including the gang leader who was wanted in an attempt to murder case, the police said today.

The accused have been identified as gang leader Deepak, alias Bhondu (25), Daniel (24) and Vashu (32).

With their arrest, the police claims to have solved 17 cases of burglaries.

Their arrests were made after investigation was taken up on the complaint of one Pradeep Nair. On December 12, the complainant went out for shopping. When he came back, he found that the lock of the main door and the locks of almirah were broken and gold jewellery, cash and mobile phone were stolen.

A case was registered and intelligence gathered.

It was learnt that a gang headed by Deepak might be involved in these incidents of burglaries.

On December 15, Deepak was arrested from the Delhi Cantt area.

At his instance, his accomplice Daniel and the receiver of stolen property, Vashu, were arrested.

"In order to meet expenses, they started committing burglaries. They used to target locked houses and commit burglaries during daytime," said a senior police official.