New Delhi, November 16
The South District police has arrested a Nigerian national for allegedly duping a mechanical engineer by declaring him the winner of Rs 12 crore in an Internet lottery.

The accused has been identified as Evan Tony, alias Franklyn (38). He is a resident of Ubiaja in Nigeria.

On November 15, Ravi Mogra, a mechanical engineer, filed a complaint at Saket police station. He reported that he had been cheated out of Rs 15 lakh by some people on the pretext of winning Rs 12 crore in an Internet lottery.

The first transaction of Rs 15,000 took place at PVR Saket, when Mogra met the accused for the first time. The amount was paid for the customs clearance charges for the consignment of the lottery which would arrive at the airport. Mogra remained in contact with the accused and deposited Rs 15 lakh for various charges.

"He was provided with letters purportedly issued from the RBI to convince him to make these payments. He had credited Rs 5 lakh in various accounts of alleged persons and paid Rs 10 lakh in cash," said Chhaya Sharma, Deputy Commissioner of Police, South District.

Mogra was called by the accused to a hotel in Bangalore, where they gave him an iron safe containing the supposed pounds.

Mogra came home and decided to break open the safe. On opening it, he found that it contained several bundles of paper coated with black powder. He then filed a complaint at the Saket police station. 

Greater Noida, November 16
The decision of the Mayawati government to divide UP into four states has generated an animated discussion in the political circles.

Gautam Budh Nagar is the top contributor of revenue in the state and is also the most developed district of UP.

If the new state of Paschim Pradesh is carved out, Gautam Budh Nagar will have a place of pride in the new disposition and could be the most suitable city to be made the capital of the proposed state, people of the state feel.

According to local MP of the BSP Surinder Nagar, the state government had first formed small divisions and districts where development projects were executed speedily.

Now, the BSP government has passed a resolution to form smaller states which could witness fast development.

Javer airport and Bodaki railway station could become a reality very soon in the new state.

District chief of the Samajwadi Party Vijender Singh Bhatti said it was nothing but a stunt of the state government, which had lost the confidence of people of the state in four and a half years of its rule.

This is a clumsy step to hide its own failures, Bhatti said.

Satinder Sisodia of the BJP said it was an election stunt of the BSP supremo. It would create more problems.

MLA Satvir Gujar said this district could be the capital city of the new state. This bold decision could only by taken by a leader like Mayawati.

Former minister and BJP leader Nawab Singh Nagar, however, said the decision was to derive electoral gains only. The BSP government was not at all serious about it.

While district chief of the Rashtriya Lok Dal Bhupinder Chaudhary said name of the new state for west UP should be Harit Pradesh. But the state government's intensions were not good and it was only a tactical move for electoral benefit. The Chief Minister had nothing to give to the public.

New Delhi, November 16
Even as the regular courses in DU colleges will hold the first semester exams from next week, School of Open Learning (SOL) with more than 3 lakh students is still not following the semester system.

Even after the university intimated all the colleges along with SOL to implement the semester system, SOL is awaiting a response from the university to its letter.

SOL's staff council said due to issues like holding examinations twice a year and lack of space to conduct these examinations, the executive director had written to the office of vice-chancellor for his final confirmation, but it has yet to get a response.

Teachers are worried that as SOL is yet to implement the semester system, students will not be able to migrate from SOL to regular colleges and vice versa. "If the syllabus being taught in SOL is different from the new syllabus in regular courses, migration will not be possible," said Prof Devender Kakkar, political science, SOL.

"Guidelines from Distance Education Council (DEC) have also asked DU to comply with the DEC norms. One of the conditions is that the students in distance mode must be offered the same syllabi and course taught in the regular mode. Thus, this is quite worrisome for the SOL students. The degree they acquire from the university is not only in violation of its own ordinance, but also runs the risk of not being recognised due to lack of compliance with the DEC norms," added Prof Kakkar.

"Even after more than five months, SOL is yet to initiate any move to introduce the semester system. Students are being given the study material of the old course, which, technically, does not exist because the ordinance regarding the course content and system of examination was amended in the EC meeting of April 25 and July 9. According to this ordinance, the old course stands replaced by a new semester-based syllabus," said Tapan Biswal, president of the Delhi University Correspondence Courses Teachers Association, SOL.

The SOL departments, however, claim that they have prepared the study material according to the new syllabus and the staff council of SOL, which is a statutory body of the college, has already prepared a position paper on the issue, highlighting the importance of parity between regular students and distance education students. It sent the paper to the vice-chancellor on August 18.

"There has been no response yet. We are just waiting for a nod from the university and the director, and the new syllabus will go in print. It must be understood that the students in the distance mode enjoy parity in terms of their degree with the regular students of the university. This parity is now under a cloud," said Biswal.

New Delhi, November 16
The BJP has urged Lieutenant-Governor Tejendra Khanna to seal all documents related to the non-existent colonies that were issued provisional certificates a few years ago.

Delhi unit chief of the BJP, Vijender Gupta said that a delegation of the party would soon meet the LG for getting an FIR registered against all the persons involved in the alleged bungling. If an enquiry is initiated, high-profile persons in the Congress government and the rich land mafia of Delhi will be exposed, he said.

Some senior leaders of the ruling party showed the vacant land on both the sides of DND flyover as Ganga Vihar unauthorized colony and obtained provisional certificates. This colony has been shown to be built upon 200 acres. There are also some other colonies--Radha Krishna Vihar, Kotla Mahigram Extension, Jasola, Sarita Vihar and Abul Fazal Enclave Part-II, Gupta said.

Addressing a conference, Gupta said that the DDA had acquired land under Section 4 of Land Acquisition Act in Ganga Vihar Colony on June 23 in 1989. It had taken possession of this land by paying compensation at the rate of Rs 27 per sq meter on June 22, 1990, to the farmers under Sections 6 and 17.

The farmers challenged this compensation in the court of ADJ. The ADJ visited the site and found that the land was vacant and just a temple and a grave were there. Then, the court ordered the DDA to pay compensation at the rate of Rs 89 per sq meter in place of Rs 27 sq metre.

New Delhi, November 16
The paternal uncle and brother of Niranjani Pillai, an NRI who was killed by her husband, Sumit Handa, arrived in Delhi from South Africa this evening. They will be examined by the Crime Branch.

However, a source said that the DNA testing of Niranjani's parents will be done if it is required in the investigation.

"It is the choice of Niranjani's parents to arrive in India and help us in the investigation," said a police officer.

On October 29, there was a heated argument between Sumit and Niranjani at their residence in Vishwakarma Colony, Pul Prahladpur. Following the argument, Sumit stabbed his wife with a knife and then strangulated her.

New Delhi, November 16
On its 91st annual convocation ceremony, Jamia Millia Islamia's vice-chancellor Najeeb Jung today announced a sizeable expansion of the institution's campus and also finally responded to the recent demands for student elections at Jamia.

The vice-chancellor ended all the speculations on his stand on conducting elections at Jamia. He had been quiet on the issue ever since student bodies started raising demands for elections for the last two months.

Saying that the environment at the university was not yet conducive to students' union, Jung said that the university recently witnessed violent scenes on the issue outside the campus.

Under such circumstances, they didn't find it to be the right time to start elections.

"However, a committee of senior professors was looking into the issue. But I believe that universities are the means of imparting education and nurturing scholars rather than "creating political leaders," Jung added as he addressed the convocation ceremony today.

On a much positive note, Jung spoke about the expected growth of university campus, adding that the university had been eyeing expansion for quite some time now.

Speaking further on better infrastructure at Jamia, Jung said that the university had already launched new centres for nano-sciences and nano-technology, besides a Centre for China Studies, a Centre for Afghanistan Studies, and Sikkim Studies programme recently. With the addition of new land to the campus, Jamia would benefit majorly.

"We are now close to acquiring the Pahari land near Jamia Nagar that the university had wanted for decades. This has only been possible due to the direct intervention of the office of Lieutenant-Governor. This additional land would help the institution expand its utilities and be more productive to its students," Jung added.

New Delhi, November 16
The residents' welfare associations (RWAs), which are opposing any hike in the power tariff, during a public hearing held recently filed their objections and suggestions against any further increase in the cost of power.

"There should be no tariff enhancement till an audit by the CAG establishes the true state of finances of the power distribution companies (discoms) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICA) establishes the inventory and tariff determination procedure," said Rajiv Kakria, a member of the Greater Kailash-I RWA.

The RWAs expressed their concern that the discoms would not furnish their records to the CAG and ICA easily and would try to delay the process and keep earning heavy profits.

In their petitions filed during the hearing, the RWAs have raised a number of concerns and objections. They have demanded an independent investigation, involving them, into the compatibility of the distribution technology and the design of electronic meters.

Noida, November 16
The much-awaited 165 km Yamuna Expressway between Greater Noida and Agra is expected to be completed by the end of December after which commuters will be able to drive to Agra at 100 kmph.

The speed limit of 100 kmph for light motor vehicles and 60 kmph for heavy vehicles has been fixed in consultation with the Uttar Pradesh government, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority and Jaypee Infratech officials.

Scheduled to open two years ahead of the target date, it has been projected that the Rs 11,000-crore access-controlled and elevated Yamuna Expressway corridor would benefit an estimated 1.2 lakh commuters heading towards Agra and beyond daily. The six-lane toll road between Greater Noida and Agra will provide commuters seamless connectivity along a six-lane main carriageway and a single-lane shoulder road, besides the option for extending the expressway by another lane in the future.

The Jaypee official said that 99 per cent of the work is complete and construction of two toll plazas and cloverleaves was in progress.

The toll charges to be levied from motorists will also be announced before opening the road to the public.

Commuters using the expressway would be able to cover the distance between the two cities in a mere 90 minutes, compared to the present two and a half hours on the GT road along the western bank of the Yamuna.

To ensure safety of the road users, the expressway will have certain restrictions and conditions for use by motor vehicles.

According to sources, slow moving vehicles like pushcarts and bullock carts will be barred from using the expressway. Overtaking and parking on the e-way will also be strictly prohibited. Vehicles will be allowed to park in case of a breakdown, but only on a marked parking site along the shoulder of the expressway.

He said the expressway will have six interchanges along its path located at 10 km, 36 km, 48 km, 10 km, 153 km and finally the last one at Agra at 165 km. Ramps will be provided for exiting at 7 km, 11 km, and 15 km along the expressway.

To provide connectivity to the areas along the expressway, 70 underpasses for vehicles, 76 underpasses for pedestrians and 41 bridges will be available.

"CCTV cameras will be fixed at an interval of every 5 km along the expressway," said an official.