New Delhi, November 22
While the death toll of the Nand Nagri fire tragedy has climbed to 16, with three more patients succumbing to their injuries at Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, those still recuperating in the city's two hospitals had visitors from their community but none of them seem to be lucky to have an attendant beside their bed.

The patients, most of them old and above 50 years, having burns should have, at least, one person for assistance as they require frequent help to turn themselves as lying in one posture pains, said hospital staff.

Among the last three deaths, while doctors had predicted 50-year-old Sonia's fate who was brought to GTB with 85 per cent burns, the other two who gave in to their trauma with burn injuries of 40 per cent were Nazira Naik (80) and Shakila (55).

According to head of the burns and plastic department, GTB, Dr Varun Kulshreshtha, in both the cases there were other factors apart from burns that led to death. "Several patients had underlying problems, such as diabetes mellitus, morbid obesity and cardiac problem and the stampede was another factor. In Sonia's case, her kidney was not working and she had left-foot gangrene apart from electrical burns. Shakila who had an unstable angina died due to heart attack and for Nazira her old age, blunt injuries with 40 per cent burns were enough to cause death."

During the day, at GTB eight patients were sent under leave against medical advice, one with 7 per cent burns was discharged and with this 21 patients - 10 in the disaster unit and 10 in the burns ward and one in ortho ward remain admitted while two other injured have been undergoing treatment at Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital.

According to doctors, most of these patients have been on IV fluids and require 24-hour assistance. "As they have to be fed, hence they require frequent help. Barring ICU, one attendant is allowed with the patient during admission. The burns ward of the hospital has a limited nursing staff, with just four nurses on duty at a given time. We are asking their people who are coming to see them to sit for some time. In such time, social workers could be helpful and we are looking towards it," said Dr Kulshreshtha.

Most of the mourners, camping at the hospital, identified the deceased by simple remains such as gold tooth and jewellery, but seemed to be hesitant to sit with their injured companions even as they came to see them in turns since the tragic night.

This points out at the hidden irony of the eunuch community where people without relatives have to bear the pain all alone. "It is a pain that we have got and will remain with us life long. We would go back to our place only with our dear ones. This fire has left us wretched and all is finished. Only possession is the cloth that we are wearing. We have to start all afresh," said a guru of the marginalised transgender community, Babita from Kolkata.

Ghaziabad, November 22
The shootout at a marriage in Ghaziabad last week, where four people were killed in an attack on a gang leader, was the latest episode in the war for controlling the lucrative racket of extortion from transporters carrying construction material in Greater Noida, police sources say.

With the November 18 attack, the war, which now sees youths trying to muscle into the racket, has claimed the lives of over a dozen people from both sides in less than a decade.

The gang war began in 2002 when Sundar Bhati, who was the actual target of the attack, split from his one-time close associate and district panchayat chairman Naresh Bhati over the share of the money they extorted from transporters, said the sources.

Sundar then orchestrated an ambush attack on Naresh in Kharkhauda town in Meerut district which was unsuccessful but made them stern enemies. Eventually, Sundar succeeded in eliminating his rival, Naresh being shot dead in Ghanghola - the native village of the former - in 2003.

Accused of the murder but freed on bail, Sundar, who faces over two dozen criminal cases of heinous crimes in different police stations of Greater Noida, Noida, Bulandshahr, Ghaziabad and Faridabad, was operating his independent extortion business in Greater Noida, the police says.

According to the sources, lifting of cement bags and iron bars from transporters' trucks is a flourishing business in the Greater Noida area and one in which Sundar maintains a monopoly.

Attracted by the profitable "business" allegedly being run under the patronage of some state agencies, realtors and politicians, other criminal elements were also trying to get into it.

One of these was Anil Dujana, who had started posing a serious threat to Sundar in the area. Intending to take revenge for his maternal uncle's murder, Naresh's nephew Amit Kasana joined hands with Dujana to jointly take on Sundar.

The November 18 attack was the first move of the newly-formed alignment between Dujana and Kasana, the police said.

"Amit Kasana is also an active criminal in Greater Noida where he had aligned with a Dujana-based criminal Anil Dujana who maintained a strong enmity with Sundar," said additional superintendent of police, Ghaziabad, Amit Verma.

Sundar was attending the marriage function of his niece Neelam Singh at a guest house in Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, when suddenly a group of men barged in and started firing at him.

Sundar and his men retaliated, taking the cover of furniture at the venue.

Four people were killed and three injured in the attack.

The Ghaziabad police recovered 30 used cartridges of 9 mm and other prohibited bores from the site and is probing the use of an AK-47 assault rifle.

The police has recovered an arms licence of Sundar which was found to be fake during the verification process with the issuing authority at Gautam Budh Nagar. — IANS

New Delhi, November 22
The Delhi government has provided a shelter to the survivors of the Nand Nagri tragedy.

They have been provided shelter at the Sunder Nagari community hall.

Deputy Collector (east) Rajesh Mishra said the shelter would be provided to the eunuchs and their friends for as long as they want.

"We are giving them water and food, including three course meals. However, we will only be able to provide shelter to people who do not belong to Delhi," he said.

He added that the Sundar Nagari community hall was provided to the eunuchs as a shelter from November 20, the same day the fire blazed the community hall in Nand Nagri, he added.

"We had short-listed three shelters, including the community hall in Sunder Nagari. The other two places were an area adjacent to the Nand Nagri community hall and the Kachipura Dharamshala near Gagan Cinema, Nand Nagri. At the area adjacent to the Nand Nagri hall, we had provided a tent. But, about 20 eunuchs started living in an accommodation, which was paid by themselves.

Now, about 300 eunuchs with their friends are staying at the Sundar Nagari community hall. Initially, there were about 600 of them staying there. They wanted to stay at this place, because it was close to the place of the congregation. They would also be able to retrieve their things and meet with their injured friends at the GTB hospital. But, a substantial number of eunuchs have left the Sundar Nagari shelter and gone back to where they came from, after they learnt the whereabouts of their friends," added the DC.

Besides providing shelter to the eunuchs, the DC also mentioned the compensation to be given to the injured and next of kin of the deceased.

"As per the policy of the government, the next of kin of the dead would receive a compensation of Rs 2 lakh. The critically wounded would be given a compensation of Rs 50,000. The persons with minor injuries will receive Rs 10,000," he said.

In case of the deceased, the next of kin, who include a family member or a spouse, will only be allowed to collect the compensation, according to the DC.

However, Naina, a eunuch, said the ties with the family were cut in the childhood when other eunuchs took them away.

"When we were two or three years old, we were taken away from our families. I have not met mine family members for a very long time. I don't know who will receive the compensation for the deceased. Even the friends of the deceased cannot claim the compensation, because the government will require a legal document from them," she said.

The DC in response to this said the government policy would have to be followed.

"The compensation for the deceased poses a complicated question. According to unofficial records, the eunuchs cater to their families, so they must have some roots. Our priority is to provide compensation to the next of kin, who include a blood relative or a spouse. Since the compensation will be given from the government fund, we will need a legal document for verification, if a friend tries to claim it," added the DC.

New Delhi, November 22
Amidst controversies regarding the semester system and allegations of non-completion of syllabi at Delhi University, teachers are now fretting over students' performance in this year's first semester exams beginning tomorrow.

The university will conduct the exams for the humanities, social science and commerce undergraduate courses under the semester system for the first time. It had earlier introduced semesters in 13 science courses in 2010.

This time around, even as there are many colleges which have successfully completed their syllabus on time, there are colleges where several portions in the syllabus remain untouched.

Last year as well, there were instances where students complained in the middle of writing their examination copies about questions in the paper which hadn't been covered in class.

"Last year, the question papers were set in a hurry. Also, the syllabus was incomplete in some colleges. A few students at Miranda House had called in their physics teacher and complained about a set of questions they hadn't studied in the class. Several other instances were noted in other science papers as well. Teachers decided on the spot to change the questions in some cases, while in others they just asked the students not to answer the question at all. The marking scheme for the paper was then reset," said Bindu Joshi, one of the invigilators for the semester exams for the last year science subjects.

Concerned that the scenario may be similar this year as well, Abha Dev Habib, physics faculty member at Miranda House, said, "Discrepancies were seen even in the second semester last year. This year as well, students are pretty much clueless about the question paper patterns. The science courses, especially the practicals and internal papers, cause a lot of inconvenience."

"Till a week ago, many colleges were still awaiting their admit cards. Until Friday, students were signing bonds for shortage of attendance and there were many who were finding out just days before the exams that their attendance was not complete and they would have to repeat the semester. There are problems with internal assessment. Students are full of worries and they ask us for the answers. Most of the times, we don't know what to tell them," added Partha Singh, history professor, Maiteryi College.

More than 50,000 students are expected to take the exams from tomorrow till December 7. The results are expected to be declared by mid-January 2012.

Greater Noida, November 22
Residents of the satellite city have decided to protest if any toll is levied on the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway.

They feel the stretch till Pari Chowk should be toll-free as it is a lifeline for the residents of Greater Noida.

In March last year, the news of a possible toll on the expressway led to several protests.

"Toll is levied to recover costs. But the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway has been operational for the past seven years without any toll. We will take the matter to the streets if a tax is levied," said Rupa Gupta, president of the Greater Noida Mahila Samajik Samiti.

"We had shifted to Greater Noida because of expressway connectivity. Now, levying a toll will be like a betrayal for us," said Niranjan Singh, a resident of Sector Beta.

Even former officials at the Authority say the proposal to levy toll on Noida-Greater Noida Expressway is unjustified.

New Delhi, November 22
Minister of state for labour Ramakant Goswami has directed the department of labour to constitute committees to complete the survey of placement agencies.

The direction has been given following an order of the Delhi High Court to the city government to get a survey conducted of the placement agencies.

There are a large number of placement agencies but the government has no record of these. Sometimes back a direction was issued by the union government to make mandatory registration of all the placement agencies, sources said.

Following the minister's direction, the department has decided to constitute district-level committees on the pattern of the district-level task force, to procure information on all persons who are on the roles of the placement agencies and other issues connected with the reported irregularities being committed by the agencies.

The district-level committees will be headed by the district labour commissioners as convener whereas the SDM of the area or his representative, ACP of the area or his representative and district sub-regional employment officer will function as members.

Goswami has directed the principal secretary and labour commissioner to keep an eye on the functioning of the committees to ensure that the report is submitted within the stipulated time period.

The department had earlier constituted district-level task force to look into the modus operandi and the complaints being submitted by the general public.

The nature of the complaints have been wide ranging as the agencies have been functioning with an aim to charge a huge amount for their services and have also been found involved in other malpractices, Goswami said.

New Delhi, November 22
For those who think sex workers are the 'social dirt' and belong to grimy streets of a restricted world, the stage performance by a group of such workers called 'Vamp' was an eye opener and a window to the lives of these people presented through bold and loud messages.

Setting up an example for others, Vamp, which stands for 'Vaishya Anyay Mukti Parishad', is a group of sex workers from Maharashtra who stood up against violence by the police and male fraternity that specially look upon them as things of exploitation. Their standing against social hostility under a united group has made them independent and they are now stepping outside their world to spread the message.

"Through our plays we want to present our side of the story as to how we are exploited by the people, particularly by the police without any reason. This is the second time we are performing in Delhi," said Shabana Dagir, general secretary of Vamp.

Enacting their story through the stage performance, the workers showed the harassment that they go through at the hands of police and bad elements.

"People treat us as if there is no law or human right. Like any other profession or work, we are also serving society with a particular demand, so can't we be respected," said Shabana.

Narrating their experiences, the workers showed how their association with a social activist running a non-profit organization 'Sangharsh' transformed their lives.

"We had never stepped outside our houses fearing how people would react to us. Then we met Meena from Sangharsh who helped us in fighting our causes. We came to know that we are also entitled to protection under the law and human rights," said Kamla Bai, another member of the Vamp.