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A Witness to History: 130 Years
Gandhiji considered The Tribune as the best ‘views paper’
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A walk down memory lane for distinguished readers
NRHM scam: CBI conducts raids, registers new cases
Physically challenged welcome, but not via quota: Nasscom
Crib deaths: Mamata defends doctors
3 more babies die in Malda hospital
CWG: 9 months on, Kalmadi gets bail
Italy
ship disaster Khare resigns as media adviser to PM 33
crorepatis, few women in Manipur poll fray
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A Witness to History: 130 Years
It is truly pleasant to go down the memory lane with the newspaper of my choice, which has been my staple reading every morning for decades. ‘A Witness to History’ is an apt title of a book that records the 130 year old history of The Tribune. Indeed, this history stands closely intertwined with the story of our country’s journey during this turbulent period. Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, the newspaper’s founder was a man of rare foresight and a great reformist. He was inspired by high ideals and wanted The Tribune to be free of any sectarian or commercial bias, and unaligned to any dogma or political party. I am happy that the newspaper has by and large lived up to its founder’s vision. While being an effective watchdog of the interests of the people, it has practiced responsible and credible journalism. The Tribune has also been a wonderful example of what good trusteeship is about. Its Trustees have been men and women who have distinguished themselves in their respective professions and who embody the spirit of The Tribune very aptly. The newspaper is one of the very few in the country, where the editor is insulated - as much as is possible - from managerial demands and proprietorial interests. But even more importantly, the newspaper has always been blessed with Editors of impeccable credentials. My friend Raj is one of them, with many very illustrious names before him and some of them are present on this happy occasion. I compliment all those who have helped shape The Tribune into the newspaper it is today-the generations before us and the current torch-bearers of this fine institution. I congratulate the author of ‘A Witness to History’, Professor V.N. Datta, for writing such a fine book. Prof Datta recounts how in the early years of the 20th century The Tribune became passionate as a patriotic and nationalist newspaper. He elaborates how from 1920 onwards, as events began moving at a fast pace and as communal tensions began building up, the newspaper’s sober and reasoned approach attempted to bridge the divide between the Hindus and the Sikhs on the one hand and the Muslims on the other. The Tribune was opposed to the dismemberment of India and made sincere efforts to prevent it, but in vain. Heart beats again
Glancing through the pages of ‘A Witness to History’ I was struck by the words of an avid Tribune reader who wrote to the newspaper on September 25, 1947, the day The Tribune resumed publication from Shimla, after Partition had forced it to move out of Lahore. And he wrote: “The heart of Punjab has begun to beat again, though the pulse is yet faint.” On May 13, 1948, to mark the Tribune’s shift to Ambala, the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru wrote in a special message to the newspaper in his inimitable style: “You have passed through many difficulties and have stood many tests. I trust you will not be carried away by momentary passions but will function with a vision of the future before you.” We have come a long way from the early years of The Tribune. Today, while India sits at the high table of nations and is looked upon and heard with respect, a vibrant media is crucial to our needs-a media that informs and educates, a media that is inspired by public interest and not guided by sectarian or commercial considerations. The Indian media of today has its inevitable highs and lows. Every day we see examples of journalism of a very high calibre. There are instances of fair and accurate reporting, free of biases. There are stories with painstaking research to back them up. Journalists often expose wrongdoings even at considerable risk to themselves. There are efforts to report constructively on subjects that are of vital national importance. Serious Business
But we also see sensationalism, driven by a desire to sell a story at any cost. There are stories without a clear understanding of the underlined issues. There is reporting which is prejudiced. There is trivialisation of important matters. There is corruption. The prevalence of the practice of ‘paid news’ exposed recently has come as a shock to all right-thinking people. It has been our government’s avowed belief that the Fourth Estate is an essential pillar of our democracy. We believe in complete independence of the media from external control. It is true that sometimes irresponsible journalism can have serious consequences for social harmony and public order, which the public authorities have an obligation to maintain, but censorship is no answer. It is for the members of the Fourth Estate themselves to collectively ensure that objectivity is promoted and sensationalism is curbed. It is for them to introspect how best they can serve our country and society and advance their well-being, and how best they can earn the respect of our common citizens. Those in the media should come together to exercise a degree of self-regulation to combat perversions like paid news. It is an important responsibility of the media to expose corruption and other ills in our polity and society. It should also advise the government and even reprimand it, when it goes wrong. But let me also suggest that it should not be all gloom and doom all the time. The world is looking up to us today and it would be but fair that positive news is also given its due share. The Indian development story is an exciting one and should be told through the print and visual mediums. I believe that good journalism is very serious business and a very difficult work. The responsibilities that journalists carry are onerous - to inform and educate the public, to keep a watch on the government’s work and to highlight issues of critical importance. It is hard to be a good journalist - ever willing to learn, ever alert to new developments, objective, fair, sensitive, balanced and constructive in approach. However, I also believe that collectively the country’s journalists have acquitted themselves reasonably well. I am convinced that the Indian media is on the balance responsible and attuned to serving national interest. I am also sure that the coming years will see even higher standards from our media. I thank you for inviting me for this fine occasion. Let me end by saying that I look forward to many more milestones in this newspaper’s onward march. Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia had charged the future generations of Tribune’s editors and other journalists with the mandate to “act for the public weal”. I am sure that advice will remain the guiding principle for The Tribune in the years to come. May God bless its path.”
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Gandhiji considered The Tribune as the best ‘views paper’
“It is a matter of great pride for us that The Tribune has completed one hundred and thirty years of uninterrupted publication. The Tribune was founded by the late Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, a progressive social, political and educational reformer far ahead of his times.
In its first issue published from Lahore on 2nd February 1881, Majithia sahib enunciated the guiding principles of The Tribune. He wanted it to be an independent, objective, constructive and fearless newspaper, free from any sectarian, political or commercial bias, not aligned to any dogma or religion. Before his death in 1898, Majithia sahib willed that The Tribune be run by a public Trust comprising persons of integrity and wide experience who would ensure that it continued to maintain its independence, objectivity and the vision he had laid down for it. On behalf of my brother trustees, I would like to say that it has indeed been a privilege and an honour to serve on the Tribune Trust and always strive to come upto the ideal set by the Founder. In these 130 years, The Tribune has been a witness to the tumultuous history of the sub-continent, chronicling the ongoing events and movements and guiding its readers through the historic changes while voicing their concerns. From the early twentieth century, it has consistently and courageously supported Indian nationalism and the freedom struggle. It is with great pride that we recall Gandhiji’s comments on its role, saying he considered The Tribune as “the best views paper”. After Independence also, The Tribune has continued to retain its distinctive character and preserve its autonomy, objectivity, fairness and liberal and independent way of thinking, whatever the odds. Today it gives me great pleasure to say that The Tribune is one of the most widely respected and read newspaper in North India. In Punjab, Haryana and Himachal, it is the largest circulated newspaper and also has a sizeable number of readers in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand. To chronicle the 130 momentous and exciting years of The Tribune, the Trust decided that it would be appropriate to bring out its history from inception to the present. The project was entrusted to the then distinguished Editor-in-Chief, Shri H.K. Dua. He approached Professor V.N. Datta, Professor Emeritus, Kurukshetra University, who has a distinguished record as a historian and has authored many acclaimed books. Professor Datta readily consented to research and write the history of The Tribune and the Trust is grateful to him for his labour of love. Apart from tracing The Tribune’s history, Professor Datta’s work critically evaluates whether the paper has lived up to the high standards of objectivity and fairness expected of it and be the voice of the people it serves. On behalf of The Tribune Trust, I would like to express our deep appreciation of Professor Datta’s painstaking and incisive effort. We are greatly honoured, Prime Minister, that you accepted our request to release the book and also address us on this occasion. You have made known your attachment to The Tribune on a number of occasions and said you are a regular and avid reader. We fervently hope we have come upto your expectations and will continue to enjoy this privilege.”
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A walk down memory lane for distinguished readers New Delhi, January 19 The occasion was the release of historian VN Datta's book on 130 years of The Tribune and it saw top politicians like HRD Minister Kapil Sibal and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni walk down the memory lane meeting friends many of whom they had not expected to see. "Most guests today were persons who associate with The Tribune traditions. For me, it was a nostalgic occasion," Ambika said. Her Cabinet colleagues Home Minister P Chidambaram, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal and Housing Minister Kumari Selja also came as did Delhi's Lt Governor Tejinder Khanna and J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who tweeted after leaving the Vigyan Bhavan premises, "Congratulations to The Tribune newspaper for completing 130 years; just attended a function to mark the milestone. PM topped the guest list." Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his colleague Kiran Choudhary were seen catching up with guests so was Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who took time out of his campaign in poll-bound Punjab to be there. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Lt Governor of Delhi Tejendra Khanna also graced the occasion. For Sibal, it was time to recall old days, "I am a Chandigarh boy and I have special affection for The Tribune. It believes in little sensationalism, hard news and is equidistant from politics." Also present today were foreign diplomats Pakistan High Commissioner to India Shahid Malik, Russian Ambassador Alexander Kadakin and Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Tariq Karim. The guest list had a fair sprinkling of veteran journalists and Editors like Kuldip Nayar, S Nihal Singh, TN Ninan, Suman Dubey, BG Verghese and KK Katyal. The presence of former Tribune Editors HK Dua and Hari Jaisingh and Editor-in-Chief of the Press Trust of India MK Razdan made the evening even more special. The occasion also had the Press Council of India Chairperson Justice (retd) Markandey Katju and Intelligence Bureau Chief Nachal Sandhu exchange notes with guests and former Rajya Sabha member Tarlochan Singh and Director, Bhai Veer Singh Sadan, Mohinder Singh share their common association with the paper. PM's Adviser TKA Nair, former Chief of Army Staff Gen VP Malik, Lord Meghnad Desai from the UK House of Lords and his wife Kishwar also made up part of the eclectic gathering as did Ashok Tandon, media adviser to former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee, and Sanjay Baru, former media adviser to Manmohan Singh, former Home Secretary GK Pillai and his wife Sudha, who is member secretary, Planning Commission. Among Indian diplomats SK Lambah, Special Envoy to Afghanistan; CR Gharekhan, former Special Envoy to West Asia, former Indian Ambassador to the US Ronen Sen and former Foreign Secretary MK Rasgotra graced the occasion which saw The Tribune Trust President RS Talwar and Trustees Justice (retd) SS Sodhi, J&K Governor NN Vohra, Lt Gen (retd) SS Mehta and Naresh Mohan host the gathering. Justice Sodhi, NN Vohra and Lt Gen Mehta were accompanied by their wives Bonny Sodhi, Usha Vohra and Madhu Mehta respectively. Also present was The Tribune general manager Sanjay Hazari; Editor, Dainik Tribune, Naresh Kaushal; and Editor, Punjabi Tribune, Varinder Walia.
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An eclectic gathering comes together for celebration
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NRHM scam: CBI conducts raids, registers new cases
Lucknow, January 19 The 1980 batch IAS topper Shukla, presently posted as member in the Board of Revenue, is reportedly a key accused as many already in prison in connection of the scam have named him as the key conspirator and beneficiary of the scam. Special CBI teams reached Lucknow this morning and combed various places, including the residence and commercial establishments owned by a leading local businessman whose proximity to Shukla has been established. Around 44 places were raided in Lucknow, Kanpur, New Delhi and Haryana as part of the crackdown on the resourceful civil servant whose wife, also a senior IAS officer, is related to a well-known political family of Madhya Pradesh. The raids followed the registration of fresh cases against some more suspects in the scam. The CBI has reportedly unearthed some fake companies that were floated by bureaucrats in collaboration with local businessmen to supply medicines and equipment. The alarming details of the scam spilled out in the open only after the murders of three CMOs in charge of the NRHM. In order to contain the damage, the Mayawati government had removed both the health ministers - Babu Singh Kushwaha directly in-charge of the NRHM and Anant Mishra who looked after health education, as well as Shukla the then Principal Secretary Health and ex-officio Mission Director of the NRHM. Shukla was directly responsible for distribution of huge Central funds and awarding of contracts to various firms to supply medicines under the scheme. He has already faced interrogation at the CBI headquarters in New Delhi. Kushwaha, after lying low for some time, made the dramatic announcement of senior officials in the Mayawati government trying to kill him and subsequently joined the BJP earlier this month. This created a lot of confusion in the party after which he offered to keep his membership suspended till he is cleared of the corruption charges in the NRHM scam.
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Physically challenged welcome, but not via quota: Nasscom
Bangalore, January 19 “The government is insisting that the private sector must reserve 3 per cent jobs for physically challenged persons. We cannot accept that,” Rita Soni, CEO of Nasscom Foundation, told The Tribune here today. Even though the primary objectives of Nasscom Foundation are to “help the underprivileged become self-reliant” and “to channelise the potential of the IT-BPO industry towards inclusive development of India”, Rita Soni said they were against following the reservation model for “inclusive development”. “Ours is a merit-based industry. The foundation would like to see physically challenged persons being recruited, trained and given work to do. If the person is good, he will do well. Otherwise, we will move on,” Soni said. She, however, added that the physically challenged faced discrimination in the IT industry and the discrimination starts right from the time of campus recruitment of students. “We are trying to sensitise the industry so that there are physically challenged-friendly software and physically challenged-friendly infrastructure in offices and there are physically challenged persons among the staff,” she said. “An American company has developed virtual Braille for visually impaired computer users. It is, however, phenomenally expensive. We are asking Indian companies to develop software for the visually impaired and other physically challenged persons,” Soni said.
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Crib deaths: Mamata defends doctors
Kolkata, January 19 The Chief Minister hit out at the erstwhile Left Front government and said the problem was "hidden" elsewhere. "The state lacked proper medical infrastructure because of the previous government's utter neglect with 40,000 children dying every year", she said. "Infant mortality needs to be looked at very seriously. It is sad that seven children have died in Malda...... There has been canard when we are trying to improve the health infrastructure, which has been left in shambles by the previous government” , she said. "As per records, the infant mortality rate in the state is 40,000 per annum. We have been able to bring down the infant morality rate by two percent in the past seven months and we will be able to bring it down to 25 percent", she told a party rally here. The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress-Congress government came to power in the state in May last year ousting the Left Front after 34 years of uninterrupted rule Left Front since 1977. —
PTI
3 more babies die in Malda hospital
Malda
(WB): Three more newborns died since last night at the Malda Sadar Hospital here and all of them were referred from hospitals located in rural areas. Seven babies had died on Wednesday in the same hospital attached to the Malda Medical College.
Dr Debasish Bhattacharya, principal of the Malda Medical College, said the babies were born premature and underweight in some rural hospitals from where they were referred. Most of the seven babies who died yesterday were from the villages of Malda, Jharkhand and Bangladesh, officials said. Meanwhile, a two-member high-powered task force, headed by Dr Tridib Banerjee, visited the hospital and met officials of the health department. Chief Medical Officer of Health Swapan Kumar Jhariat said health secretary Sanjay Mitra would visit the hospital tomorrow. —
PTI
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CWG: 9 months on, Kalmadi gets bail
New Delhi, January 19 The court also granted bail to OC former director general and co-accused VK Verma. While granting them bail, Justice Mukta Gupta directed them to furnish before the trial court a bail bond of Rs 5 lakh each and two sureties of the like amount. Justice Gupta said, "There is no allegation that the petitioners are likely to flee from justice and will not be available for the trial." The court directed them not to leave the country without prior permission of the trial court. Kalmadi was arrested by the CBI on April 25, 2011 while Verma was arrested on February 23, 2011 in the Timing, Scoring and Result system scam. While allowing their plea for bail which cited Supreme Court's judgment in 2G spectrum case wherein it was held that "bail is rule and jail is exception", Justice Gupta said, "There is no allegation of money trail to the petitioners. “There is also no evidence that the petitioner is threatening witnesses or interfering with evidence during investigation or trial." Kalmadi had moved the High Court in January, seeking bail citing the Supreme Court’s judgment in 2G Spectrum case and said it has been held that "bail is rule and jail is exception". Kalmadi said only a chargesheet has been filed against him and there was remote possibility of commencement of the trial in the near future. The CBI had, however, opposed the pleas of Kalmadi and Verma and referred to the trial court's January 4 order submitting that it has been decided that the case would be heard on a day-to-day basis after scrutiny of documents. —
PTI
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First batch of 12 Indians returns home
New Delhi, January 19 The flight arrived at 11.17 am, but only four of them -- residents of Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh -- came out of Terminal 3. "Of the 12, six went to Goa and one each to Lucknow and Guwahati by domestic flights," GH Ratra, an official from the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, said. The remaining about 125 rescued Indians will be flown back home tomorrow, Ratra said. — PTI
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Khare resigns as media adviser to PM
New Delhi, January 19
Sixty-five-year-old Khare, formerly a senior journalist with The Hindu who was appointed Media Adviser to Singh in June 2009, submitted his resignation but declined to give reasons for it.
Pachauri, who was a journalist with NDTV India, was earlier in the day appointed as Communication Adviser in the PMO and he would report to Pulok Chatterjee, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister.
Official sources said bringing Pachauri into the PMO was part of efforts to create a nucleus for better communication of Prime Minister’s views and image.
A former journalist, Khare said that he had sent his resignation to the Prime Minister and thanked him for the opportunity to work under him.
"I want to rediscover the joys of being a reporter," he said adding he wanted to go back to journalism.
Before joining the PMO in June 2009, Khare was Senior Associate Editor and Chief of Bureau with The Hindu in New Delhi and earlier Resident Editor of The Times of India in Ahmedabad. As media adviser, he held the rank of Secretary to the Government of India. — PTI
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crorepatis, few women in Manipur poll fray Guwahati, January 19 The top three positions in the list of crorepati candidates are occupied by ruling Indian National Congress (INC) candidates. They are: TN Haokip (Saikot constituency) with total declared assets worth more than Rs 10 crore, Alfred Kan-ngam Arthur (Ukhrul constituency) with declared assets of over Rs 7 crore and Ksh Biren Singh (Lamlai constituency) with declared assets worth over Rs 5 crore. Out of 258 candidates, 246 are men while only 12 are women. The ratio is definitely not in tune with prevailing trend in the Manipur society where women are always found in the forefront of almost all agitations. One of the women candidates, Indira Oinam of the BJP, is contesting against state Chief Minister and Congress stalwart Okram Ibobi Singh from the Thoubal constituency. Tasaduk Ariful Hussain, regional coordinator of the North East Election Watch, said though 279 candidates were in the poll fray in the state, the organisation could analyse credential of only 258 candidates. Affidavits of rest 21 candidates, mostly Independents, could not be analysed for various reasons. Of the 258 candidates whose affidavits were analysed, only three have criminal charges registered against them. They are: Alhaj Md Ahmed Ali, (Andro constituency) of the INC, Laishram Kadamjit singh (Wangkhem constituency) of the MSCP and Kongkhom Maglem Singh (Mayang Imphal constituency) of AITC. Sixty-six per cent of candidates in the poll fray have never filed I-T returns and 35 per cent of them have not furnished their PAN details. |
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“I am delighted to be in the midst of The Tribune family once again. The last time I was involved in your celebrations, I had the pleasure of releasing an anthology of selected writings to commemorate 125 years of this magnificent paper. Today marks the release of a comprehensive history of The Tribune, on completion of 130 years of its publication.
It is truly pleasant to go down the memory lane with the newspaper of my choice, which has been my staple reading every morning for decades.
“I am delighted to be in the midst of The Tribune family once again. The last time I was involved in your celebrations, I had the pleasure of releasing an anthology of selected writings to commemorate 125 years of this magnificent paper. Today marks the release of a comprehensive history of The Tribune, on completion of 130 years of its publication.
To see the newspaper conquer another milestone were people from different walks of life — Union ministers, Chief Ministers and distinguished personalities like Marshall of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, whose special mention at today's function by The Tribune's Editor-in-Chief Raj Chengappa invited an instant applause which Prime Minister himself initiated from the dais he shared with The Tribune Trustees.
Countering criticism from the Opposition and a section of the media over the fresh crib deaths in Malda Sadar hospital, Banerjee said, "Out of the seven babies that had died, two were brought dead to the hospital and the rest were brought in a moribund condition".