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BJP rally pulls crowds
Maintenance can’t be denied to adulterous ex-wife: Court
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Gzb gets first theme-based park along NH-24
HC notice to DU on MA music entrance test
Hollywood writers in Delhi
No insurance claim if existing ailments concealed
Two acquitted of gangrape charge
To ease congestion, govt mulls hefty parking charges
DMRC opens winter home for senior men
Arab film festival
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BJP rally pulls crowds
New Delhi, November 20 Being the first big event after Anna Hazare's campaign, held at the same ground in August, the rally stood nowhere in comparison to the Gandhian's campaign, either in magnitude or the spirit of the crowd. However, in comparison to other rallies of the BJP held in the city, the public participation was unusually high. The ground was full to its three fourth capacity and had supports from neighboring villages of the Capital. A large number of buses were seen lined up outside the Maidan. The vehicles had brought party workers from nearby states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajashtan, Himachal and Jammu and Kashmir. "Some people reached here by trains last night itself. They were taken directly to the ground. Those who came from the nearby states in the morning were bought to the ground in the morning," said a party worker. The municipal councillors, in an attempt to ensure their election ticket, had put in extra efforts to organise the rally. With the municipal elections to be held next year, the councillors were asked to gather supporters to showcase the party's appeal. Also, it was possibly the last big rally before the MCD election so the ticket-seekers were asked to collect funds. It being Sunday, the rally did not create much trouble for the commuters. Except Ring Road, which saw a massive jam, the rally did not cause much hindrance to the traffic flow. The Delhi police, following some tip-offs from the intelligence bureau, had made tight security arrangements. It had deployed over 100 commandos in and around the venue. "CCTV cameras were installed in and around the ground and a control room was set up inside the venue. We had asked the organisers to install door frame metal detectors, hand-held metal detectors and baggage scanners," said a senior police officer. |
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Maintenance can’t be denied to adulterous ex-wife: Court
New Delhi, November 20 Additional sessions judge TR Naval said, "The findings that the divorcee wife has been living in adultery will not provide any benefit to him (husband)". The court was hearing a revision petition filed by a Delhi police employee and his divorced wife over the issue of maintenance. Laxmi Narain came in appeal against the metropolitan magistrate's order in 2008, asking him to pay Rs 4,000 as monthly maintenance to his wife. The two got married in February 2004 and after divorce Narain, who wedded for the second time, questioned the maintenance amount. His divorced wife opposed his plea for discontinuation of the maintenance and said, "He was a man of means and he was earning Rs 10,000 per month as salary and Rs 50,000 per month from other sources." "I am unable to maintain myself being illiterate and unemployed. I pray for seeking direction to my ex-husband to pay Rs 15,000 per month as maintenance and Rs 5,500 as litigation charges," said the petition of the woman, a resident of east Delhi. The court disposed off both the petitions, saying that the order passed by the metropolitan magistrate was "fair" and "proper". The man in his petition said he did not have sufficient source of income and had liabilities towards his mother, wife and two children. The court said the magistrate, while deciding the alimony, had also kept in mind that the man had re-married and had the responsibility of his second wife and children. "In view of the above reasons and discussion, I am of the view that there is no infirmity, illegality or inaccuracy in the impugned order and there is no merit in the revisions. Therefore, both the revisions are dismissed," said the court in its order on Wednesday.
— IANS |
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Gzb gets first theme-based park along NH-24
Ghaziabad, November 20 Even though the park is not officially opened for public, people keep visiting here everyday. GDA vice-chairperson Narendra Kumar Chaudhary said, "This is a theme-based park which will beautify the area and also reuse the wasteland. We have developed it in a grand way. This particular flower survives the weather conditions and remains in bloom for nine months." "Earlier, there were no jogging tracks here, only encroachments. Now, the park has added beauty to our colony," said Manish Chaubey, a resident of the area and a regular visitor to the park. "There are description boards on the lines of Swarn Jayanti, Lohia Park and Manav Park. This is also a replica of the canna plantations at the Parliament House annex and Shanti Path," said SP Sisodia, in-charge of horticulture, GDA. According to Sharmishta Nath, a resident of the area, "This was a wasteland with only garbage and stray cattle. We had been fighting for the development and beautification of the area and after years, the area can now boast of a picnic spot". The park has been created as a propagation centre and these flowers will be developed in the nursery from where people can take saplings to their home. The total cost of the project is Rs 35 lakh. Around 10,000 saplings of the flowers in five colours have been planted in the garden. |
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Trade fair overflows with Sunday rush
New Delhi, November 20 Today being a Sunday, the fair witnessed extreme rush, especially of families, and almost all pavilions reported a rise in their sales. Everything from antiques, home décor items, clothes, footwear and electronic items to even spices sold like hot cakes. While the accessory stoppages at the West Bengal, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu pavilions turned out to be one of the favourites among the young ladies, others made it a point to visit the international stalls to purchase affordable electronic goods. "The fair is an excellent place to purchase home décor items. I have purchased some bedding from the Bengal pavilion and am planning to buy some carpets from the Rajasthan pavilion. Also, my daughter purchased an integrated makeup kit at the Chinese mart. She had wanted one for a long time now. Visiting the fair every year is now is a tradition for us," said Preeti Roy, a housewife who was at the fair with her family. In fact, the rush was so heavy that almost all the pavilions had long queues of people outside them throughout the day. Mansi, a visitor at the Himachal pavilion, said, "There is a lot of rush today. Each visitor is spending almost half an hour at any pavilion." "The pavilions are very congested. It's hard to stand at a stall as you get pushed by the crowd. The rush has left almost no scope for bargaining," added another visitor at the Rajasthan pavilion. Most youngsters were attracted by the use of vibrant colours, the architectural layout of the pavilions and the various mock set-ups that made for a perfect background for pictures. Digital cameras, handycams and mobile phones came in handy for those trying to capture the colourful set up. Paramjeet and his friends were having fun with cameras at the fair. He said, "The decoration is brilliant. The bright colours at the Rajasthan, Haryana and Karnataka pavilions are some of the spots where we just couldn't resist clicking pictures." |
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Bamboo culture on display at northeastern stalls
New Delhi, November 20 The wide range of exhibits in variegated texture displayed at most of the stalls will fascinate every woodcraft lover. For all those who want to deck up their houses with handicrafts and furniture made of bamboo and cane, these stalls are a must visit. Sudha Kaul from Greater Kailash had come to the fair with the plan to renovate the interiors of her house with a cozy wooden look and felt that the furniture of the northeastern states were classy as well as easy to handle. The Tripura pavilion greets you with items such as intricately designed sofas, tables, attractive hangings and utility items such as woven baskets, tables, yoga mats, folders, purses, pen stands and bamboo curtains, all moderately priced. There is a lot of labour that went into getting a finished ware, said Pradeep Chakravorti and Subrato Sarkar while explaining how the bamboo and cane objects were processed with a skill that involved years of practice. "It is a long process. For the texture and quality, we treat the bamboo with boric acid, borax and NaSO4," they said. At the Meghalaya stalls, the highlights were spices and handloom and handicraft items. According to HK Mishra, from the forest department of the state, all the products on display at the stall are organic. "These products have a mass appeal as they are unlike those made in the cities which are usually adulterated. They are of good quality and so priced accordingly," said the owner of a Meghalaya stall. The Manipur, Assam and Nagaland pavilions present the works of rural artisans in the form of "kauna" mats (hand-woven water grass mats) and hand-knit shawls made of a unique yarn. |
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Bone artists struggle to keep tradition alive
New Delhi, November 20 One such family is that of Neelofar Begum and Mohammed Shariq, who are displaying bone creations at the Delhi pavilion of the India International Trade Fair. The family from Daryaganj uses the bones of camel and buffalo in place of ivory. To maintain the look and feel of the ivory art, the family has retained the designs used in ivory carving. Traditionally, ivory was used for bone carving and creating other similar artifacts, but after a global ban on its trade in 1989, the industry has shrunk. Despite the efforts of artists like Begum and Shariq, the popularity of the art is gradually fading, with most of the artists in the Old Delhi area saying goodbye to the age-old family tradition. "The shift to camel bones has reduced the appeal because people are fond of ivory due to its lustre. The availability of Chinese products has significantly affected its demand over the years. The Chinese manufacturers buy the bones from butchers here at a higher price and then manufacture goods in bulk and sell them at lower prices," explained Neelofar. Until six years ago, the family used to get bones from Rajasthan, but now, it purchases it locally at a lower cost. "Getting bones from Rajasthan cost us more. One kg comes for around Rs 250, including the transportation charge, against its rate of Rs 100 per kg in Delhi. The bones are of sacrificed animals," said Neelofar, who has been in the trade for the past 20 years. Reluctant to leave the family business, Shariq said, "Sadly, even though our art is appreciated, there aren't enough buyers. We wait for such exhibitions to sell our hand-made bone items. Otherwise, on normal days, we hardly have any sale. Moreover, as this work involves a lot of time, we have a limited stock. It is difficult to find artisans for help. We have travelled to countries such as South Africa, Oman, Hong Kong and Dubai to train artisans there. But our work is not valued in our country," Shariq said. |
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HC notice to DU on MA music entrance test
New Delhi, November 20 A division bench of acting Chief Justice AK Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw on Friday issued notice to the university, faculty of music and fine arts, Ramjas College, and student Avinash Kumar Jha on the petition filed by Babita Rawat. The court asked all the respondents to file their reply by January 27. Rawat stated that she had been denied admission in the MA music for the academic year 2011-12 despite the fact that she secured 63 per cent marks in aggregate in BA music while studying in Ramjas College. She stated that Avinash Kumar Jha who was not eligible to be even registered for the course had not only been selected but also granted admission in MA music in Ramjas College. The petitioner submitted that she and other candidates were subjected to an entrance test (practical) in July by a four-member selection committee constituted by the faculty of music and fine arts, department of music, DU. The faculty exhibited the first, second and final lists of selected candidates. But the name of the petitioner was not included in any list. "The merit list is drawn solely on the basis of the performance in the entrance test (practical). No written test is taken. No record of the entrance test (practical) is maintained by the selection committee," petitioner's counsel Ashok Agarwal said. "The decisions to select candidates are solely at the whims and fancies of the committee members. Such a criteria is open to discrimination, favouritism, arbitrariness and therefore, impermissible in law," he added.
— IANS |
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Hollywood writers in Delhi
New Delhi, November 20 The visit, whose goal was to teach participants of the four-day conference -- which concluded on Sunday -- on ways to use storytelling for social progress, was organised by US-based University of Southern California. "We are thrilled to bring some of Hollywood's master storytellers to India to share their insights with entertainment education experts from around the world," said Hollywood Health and Society Programme's director Sandra de Castro Buffington. It is a programme of the Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism in Los Angeles. "Storytelling is a powerful tool for social change which can educate people and help them acquire knowledge on serious issues in our society," Buffington said. Buffington was one of the four writers and producers in the trip. The others were Christopher Keyser, president of the Writers Guild of America, West; Zoanne Clack ("Grey's Anatomy"); Michael Nash ("Climate Refugees"); and Walt Disney Feature Animation executive Karen
Tenkhoff. — IANS |
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No insurance claim if existing ailments concealed
New Delhi, November 20
The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) gave the ruling while setting aside a Himachal Pradesh State Consumer Commission judgement, which had directed Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) to pay Rs 50,000 as insurance claim to the kin of a policy holder, who died of tuberculosis in 2001.
Allowing the appeal by LIC, the NCDRC said there was credible evidence that the policy holder was suffering from tuberculosis and he had concealed it from the company, thus entitling the insurer to deny him the claim. "Since, an insurance is a contract entered between the parties in utmost good faith, suppression of any material facts by the person insured, as was done in this case, entitles the insurance company to repudiate the claim as per the terms and conditions of the policy," an NCDRC bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhan said. "We, therefore, find merit in the revision petition and allow the same," the bench said. The state commission, had directed LIC to pay the claim amount along with a litigation cost of Rs 1,000 to the petitioner, Shakuntala Devi, wife of the policy holder. Devi had told the state consumer forum that her husband had taken a policy worth Rs 50,000 in 1999 and its premium was regularly paid by him, but it lapsed in September 2001 because the authorised LIC agent failed to deposit the money to the insurance company. The person insured was declared a defaulter for no fault of his and on his death on November 26, 2001, the claim filed by her was repudiated on flimsy grounds, she had told the state commission. The LIC, in its appeal before the NCDRC, had accepted the same, but added the policy was revived on 16 November, 2001, ten days before his death, on a representation by the policy-holder. While seeking revival of the policy, the policy-holder, however, did not disclose to LIC that he was suffering from tuberculosis and was undergoing treatment for it, the LIC added in its appeal. The NCDRC, in an ex-parte order, accepted LIC's appeal, saying the revival of policy amounts to a new contract and the fact that the policy holder was not in good health should have been disclosed. "We also agree with the counsel for petitioner (LIC) that there is adequate credible evidence on record that the respondent's husband was suffering from tuberculosis and that he had suppressed this material fact," it said.
— PTI |
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Two acquitted of gangrape charge
New Delhi, November 20 The court while acquitting the two accused said the sequence of events which the woman had given were improbable and the medical report too did not support her version. "On the face of it, the entire story put forward by the prosecutrix (woman) is a cock and bull story which does not inspire confidence of the court," Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau said. The court acquitted Haryana residents Ami Chand and Sushil of charges of gangraping the woman after kidnapping her and administering poison to her after that. "I hereby hold that the prosecution has not been able to prove and substantiate the allegations against Ami Chand and Shushil beyond reasonable doubt and hence,the benefit of the doubt is being given to them who are acquitted of the charges under various sections of the IPC," the judge said. The woman had also alleged that Chand forcibly married her in July 2008 and kept her confined in his house. She said a few days after her marriage, she ran away from the house and on September 15, 2008, Chand, Sushil and one of their associates Rajender, who has been declared proclaimed offender, kidnapped her and raped her. The woman had said that she was raped in Haryana and she later came to Delhi and reported the matter to the police. "The photographs of marriage between the woman and Ami Chand which have been placed on record do not reflect any kind of fear or pressure on her face" the court said. The court noted the woman had got married to one Manoj without giving divorce to her first husband and without disclosing it, she again got married for the third time to Chand. The court said when Chand came to know of the woman's previous marriage, he had a quarrel with her and to take revenge, she wrongly implicated him and others in the case. It said when she got exposed of her misdeeds, she fled her home with cash and jewellery.
— PTI |
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To ease congestion, govt mulls hefty parking charges
New Delhi, November 20 To keep a tab on the growing private vehicles, the government has proposed to levy congestion charges on the motorists entering some areas. It also plans to levy hefty parking charges. The matter was put forward in a document submitted to the Planning Commission, outlining the priorities for the 12th Plan (2012-17). Taking a clue from the suggestions placed by The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a non-government organisation, the government has also proposed putting in place a strict monitoring mechanism to ensure that no vehicle is allowed to be used without a proper fitness and pollution-under control certificate. In a letter to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, the CSE, citing examples of cities like London, Stockholm and Tokyo, said experiences from across the world showed that parking controls, parking pricing and taxes topped the list of the car restraint measures. Considering the growing population and increasing number of vehicles in the city, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has also asked the transport department to finalise a long-term plan to enhance the transport infrastructure during the 12th five year plan. According to the latest statistics, the number of vehicles registered in the city went up to 64.52 lakh in March 2010 from 5.62 lakh in 1981. The total number of vehicles in Delhi is more than the combined number of vehicles in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. On an average over 1,000 vehicles are added to the city roads everyday. |
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DMRC opens winter home for senior men
New Delhi, November 20 The shelter, which will remain open till March 31 next year, can accommodate about 45 to 50 persons. The DMRC will provide all basic necessities such as bed, pillow, blanket, chair, water dispenser, plate, glasses etc to the occupants. The facility, being run in association with NGO Help Age India, will serve dinner, breakfast and tea to the occupants. Basic medial assistance will also be provided to the residents. This winter home is expected to be of great benefit during the extreme winter months of December, January and February. Along with accommodation, food and basic medical help, physiotherapy and health check-up sessions will also be organised for the residents. DMRC officials will inspect the home periodically to ensure that it functions properly and the quality of the services remains good. |
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Arab film festival
New Delhi, November 20 The two-day Arab film festival will begin tomorrow and will be inaugurated by Ambassador of Iraq Ahmad Berwari. Among the films that will be screened during the two days is Iraqi filmmaker Mohamed Al Daradji's 'Son of Babylon', a story set in Northern Iraq, two weeks after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Also on the list are Palestinian film 'Salt of this Sea' directed by Annemarie and Tunisian director Nacer Khemir's 'Wanderes of the Desert', besides 'The City of Life' by UAE filmmaker Ali F Mostafa and 'The Silence of the Palace' by Moufida Tlatli of
Tunisia. — PTI |
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