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Jaiswal defends tickets to outsiders
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Hand over Indian kids quickly, Norway told
For fast-greying India, PM okays Senior Citizens Council
Soon: Laser mapping of Himalayas; SASE to do job
Single PG medical entrance in 2013
Another corrupt Bihar biggie loses house
Jawans thrash cops in Pune; Army to probe
Cong compares Modi rule with Nazi regime Three held in Falak case
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UP POLLS 2012
Lucknow, February 1 Hitting out at various political parties for stalling UP’s development during the past 22 years, she thundered “tabahi la di hai, aam aadmi ka na samman surakshit hai na zameen”. “There are problems all around. All sections of the society are in distress and pain. The future of farmers, labourers and the poor is in danger. There is uncertainty in the state that an order might come by which the land of farmers might be acquired for the wealthy,” she added. “Koi sunene wallah hai?” she queried . “No” came her answer. “Why is there no one to hear their problems? Because the leaders of the political parties who were supposed to listen had been involved in all forms of misdeeds over the past 22 years,” came her answer. Referring to the axing of ministers by BSP Chief Minister Mayawati, she said, “The present Chief Minister dismissed 21 of her ministers when elections were only a month away. Why was she not able to see their corruption during the past five years? I want to ask whether taking resignations has made her government saaf-paak (clean). Is it not an attempt to cheat the people.” At Sitapur, BSP supremo Mayawati urged people: “Karara jawab dena hoga.” She was referring to the opposition party’s propaganda against the BSP, which, according to her, was due to their anti-Dalit mindset. If everything wrong with the state was due to the Congress not being in power for the past 22 years, the wrong policies of the Congress and its step-motherly treatment of her government was Mayawati’s diagnosis for the same set of problems. The state witnessed a number of rallies by major political today. Besides the twin rallies of Sonia Gandhi at Deoria and Gonda and Mayawati at Sitapur and Barabanki, Rahul Gandhi addressed three rallies at Bahraich, Faizabad and Ambedkarnagar. SP national president Mulayam Singh Yadav addressed rallies at Lucknow and son Akhilesh at Kushinagar and Deoria. Former national president of BJP Rajnath Singh was speaking at Barabanki and Gonda and Uma Bharti at Kanpur and Mahoba, while Lok Janshakti leader Ramvilas Paswan addressed rallies at Faizabad and
Gonda. EC’s spokes in the wheel BJP’s fascination with the ‘Rath’ by now is well known. There was no surprise, therefore, when Uma Bharti made it be known that she would move out on a ‘Parivartan Yatra’, a bus decked with flowers, seeking people’s support for changing the regime. BJP National President Nitin Gadkari was to flag off the ‘rath’. Her usual fiery self, Bharti announced that she was proceeding with the ‘yatra’ in the absence of clear instructions from the Election Commission. Even as she was speaking, the instructions from the EC arrived. Even if the bus moved an inch, announced a morose looking Bharti, it would be considered a violation of the code of conduct. There were long faces even as Gadkari was forced to grin and wave the green flag inside the party office, for the sake of the waiting photographers. Impressed with ‘flower power’ Blue orchids in abundance generally adorn the backdrop and the dais every time Mayawati addresses the media at the party office in Lucknow. Great care is also taken to change the backdrop also every time. The elaborate and lavish floral arrangements seem to have impressed the Congress too, as the party has begun emulating Behenji. Flowers in Congress colours, white Gerbera, green ferns and orange , decked the backdrop when the party released its manifesto and earlier, the vision document. The backdrop too was different each time. Sting in the tale The BSP candidate from Gangoh ( Saharanpur), Nahid Munawwar Hasan, was unceremoniously withdrawn hours after a TV channel carried out a sting operation and showed him boasting that he would be spending a lot more than the ceiling fixed by the Election Commission. The sting also exposed candidates accepting donations from ‘corporate houses’. “We will not tolerate such irresponsible behaviour by any of our candidate but the EC should also ensure that other parties take equally stern action,” said Mayawati. “BSP is a disciplined party and our party has already taken action against several leaders, ministers and MLAs found involved in malpractices”, she added, patting her own back. Tailpiece: A damp squib Election Commission’s strictness over election expenditure has dampened the spirit of manufacturers and sellers who eagerly await elections in UP. According to one such manufacturer, Sheela Enterprises owner Rajesh Agarwal, this has been the most lacklustre (read unprofitable) election in the last 40 years. A candidate who spent Rs 50,000 earlier is not venturing to shell out more than Rs 2000, he rued. A candidate who used to buy around ten thousand flags, now hardly buys 100 flags. The sale has dipped by more than 90 per cent compared to the last election in 2007, he confessed.
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Jaiswal defends tickets to outsiders
New Delhi, February 1 Congress, he said, had zeroed in on 25 per cent of the constituencies where its organisation was non-existent. The party, therefore, scouted around for candidates from other parties who could be depended upon to use their own personal network and caste base to mobilise support. “What other choice did we have but to look outside for help,” Jaiswal asked while dismissing complaints that the party had overlooked loyal party supporters in favour of outsiders. Jaiswal, however, stressed that the party had chosen those “outsiders” who had a previous “Congress connection” either personally or through their families. “What we have done is to use the infrastructure built by the individual candidates and injected the Congress ideology in their campaign,” he explained. Predictably, Jaiswal was all praise for the unstinting efforts being made by AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi. It was Rahul Gandhi, he maintained, who had changed the discourse of the election campaign from caste and religion to development. Jaiswal hoped that the youth, comprising 10-15 per cent of the electorate who are being particularly drawn to Rahul Gandhi, would play a decisive role in these polls. Exuding confidence, the Kanpur MP said the Congress was far better placed this time in UP as compared to previous elections as the party had identified its weak points and made necessary efforts to plug the lacunae. Given the high stakes involved, the party has been ruthless in denying tickets to those who had no presence in their constituencies and had not polled more than a few thousand votes in the past.
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Hand over Indian kids quickly, Norway told
New Delhi, February 1 Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan also met Norway's Environment and International Development Minister Eric Solheim and pressed for an expeditious resolution of the issue, MEA spokesman Syed Akbaruddin told reporters here. An agreement was reached between India and Norway last week under which the parents (Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharya) named Anurup's brother Arunabhash Bhattacharya as the primary caretaker of the two children, Abhigyan (3) and Aishwarya (1). The agreement was between the Indian government through its mission in Norway, the municipality concerned of Norway, the Norwegian Childcare Services, and the parents. Arunabhash will be in Norway tomorrow and meet the Norwegian authorities to discuss the procedures of taking charge of children. The three-year-old Abhigyan and one-year-old Aishwarya, children of Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharya, an NRI couple living in Stavanger, Norway, were taken under protective care by Barnevarne (Norwegian Child Welfare Services) in May last year on grounds that they were not looked after properly by their parents. Barnevarne had placed them in foster parental care as per the directive of the local Norwegian court, mandated under Norwegian laws.
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For fast-greying India, PM okays Senior Citizens Council
The council, an offshoot of the 1999 National Policy for Older Persons, which has failed to make much impact on ground, is expected to help the governments implement policies, programmes and legislative measures related to old persons. The PM’s approval comes at a time when evidence is mounting of the elderly being clearly unaware of their rights and entitlements under the law. A recent survey conducted by HelpAge India revealed that only 18 per cent of the 60-plus people had heard of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, and 11 per cent knew of the 13-year-old National Policy on Older Persons. The survey also found that 55 pc of the older persons still had remittances from children as the major source of income followed by 35 per cent who depended on pensions. Hardly any evidence of constructive engagement of the old came to the fore though proof of their abuse was ample, with daughters-in-law being named as the principal abusers by 63.4 pc elderly. The newly approved council will be headed by the Social Justice Minister and promises to promote physical and financial security, health and productive living of the elderly. The council would be anchored in the Social Justice Ministry which had proposed it. The move will determine how well India can use its fast greying population. Projections for 1996-2016 made by the Technical Group on Population Projections have already said that the 60-plus population will cross the 100-million mark in 2013. Projections beyond 2016 made by the United Nations say that India will have 198 million persons over 60 years in 2030 and 326 million in 2050. In fact, the 25-year period between 1991 and 2016 will witness an increase of 55.4 million 60-plus persons which is nearly the same as the entire population of old persons in 1991. Further, close to six-tenths of the population in the age group of 60 to 69 years can be expected to be in reasonably good physical and mental health, free of serious disability and capable of leading an active life while one third of the population aged from 70 to 79 years can be expected to be fit. This means avenues have to be made available to engage them constructively. growing OLD
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Soon: Laser mapping of Himalayas; SASE to do job
This data, part of which would be translated into maps, would assist in the movement and deployment of troops, planning military operations as well as provide inputs for civic development and calculating the extent and availability of fresh water resources. “We have received a sanction for executing the project and have floated a global request for information to procure an aircraft equipped with the requisite instruments,” Ashwaghosha Ganjoo, Director, Snow and Avalanche Studies Establishment (SASE) said. SASE is a DRDO laboratory engaged in the study of snow physics and avalanche control that will be undertaking the project. The envisioned aircraft, a twin-engine turboprop capable of long aerial survey missions, will be based at the Chandigarh airbase and be flown by IAF personnel. It will be equipped with a LiDAR (laser detection and ranging), photogrammetry and hyper-spectral instruments as well as a large format digital mapping camera system. The aircraft is also expected to have satellite communication and data-link capabilities. Using data generated from these sensors, SASE would be able to generate accurate topographic data and produce high-resolution digital maps as well as 3-D images that have immense value for civilian as well as military applications. Unlike aerial or satellite imagery, these sensors can detect subtle topographic features such as river terraces and river channel banks, penetrate tree cover and measure the land surface elevation beneath the vegetation canopy and also help evaluating the properties of the underlying soil. Know ABout The Project
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Single PG medical entrance in 2013
New Delhi, February 1 The annual convocation of the
NBE, which conducts postgraduate and postdoctoral examinations in 54 disciplines approved by the Board for the award of Diplomate of National Board, was held on Wednesday. Chairperson of the Board Dr K Srinath Reddy said the NBE has taken a decision to hold the National Entrance-cum- Eligibility Test
(NEET) for PG medical streams from the next year, as requested by the Ministry of Health. The decision was taken at the meeting of the governing body of the Board held here yesterday after AIIMS backed out saying it could not handle the load of holding PG entrance tests for the entire country. Following this, the Health Ministry asked the NBE to do the needful. While agreeing to discharge the responsibility in “public interest”, the Board has made it clear that they want freedom and flexibility to hold the proposed examination. “We need freedom and control over the proposed test. We will write to the ministry for clarity in this regard because we are not a subordinate body and we have a clean history of conducting examinations for the past over 30 years. Never has any finger been pointed at us for leakages or any discrepancies in conduct of the exams,” Dr Reddy told The Tribune. Although the original responsibility of holding the proposed
NEET-PG was of the MCI, which was supposed to conduct it in 2012, the MCI failed to muster the resources. Even AIIMS said it could not help here. “We cannot have a system where the MCI exercises control over the question bank part of the exam and we simply act as the exam-conducting body. So while we have agreed in principle to hold the test next year, we will ask the ministry to clarify the nature of arrangement of the test and its conduct; the legal instrument whereby the MCI will delegate its powers to us and the resources to be allocated to us for the purpose,” NBE officials said. Both
NEET-PG and NEET-UG for medical seats were to be conducted by the MCI in 2012 but the MCI and the Health Ministry sought more time in the matter saying they were not prepared. The matter is being heard in the Supreme Court where the Government has promised to conduct both the single entrance PG and UG medical entrance tests from 2013.
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Another corrupt Bihar biggie loses house
Patna, February 1 However, he was removed from the top post of Bihar Police after an year when the state came under President Rule. The Special Vigilance Unit (SVU) constituted by Nitish Kumar government soon after its formation to take on the “high and mighty” indulged in corrupt practices had zeroed in on Mihsra, then a serving officer. The SVU men comprising former CBI men hired by Bihar government had lodged their first case against Mishra and raided his house here and other places. Subsequently, a case for possessing assets disproportionate to his known source of Income was lodged against him. When the state government enacted a new legislation by the name of “Bihar Special Courts Act 2009”, Mishra and other officials facing cases under the prevention of corruption Act were prosecuted under this new Act as well. It was under this new Act, the state government, following a Court order, had confiscated the house of a 1980 batch IAS officer S.S.Verma and a Treasury Assistant Girish Kumar. The houses seized by the Patna district administration were transferred to the education department and welfare department respectively by the orders of state cabinet and now they had been converted into government schools. According to Additional Director General, Vigilance P.K.Thakur, the special judge hearing the vigilance cases had passed similar confiscation orders against five to six other officers who had built beautiful homes in the state capital and other places. But the state administration was awaiting the disposal of their appeal in Patna High Court to proceed with the seizure of their property. Mishra was also expected to move the High Court against the special Vigilance Court’s verdict that came today.
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Jawans thrash cops in Pune; Army to probe
Mumbai, February 1 The Pune traffic cops caught two jawans from the College of Military Engineering while they were riding a two-wheeler on the wrong side of a bridge. While the jawans were being issued challans, an argument broke out between them and the police after which the soldiers were taken to a police chowky nearby. Reports from Pune said the two soldiers who were roughed up at the chowky called up their colleagues from their mobile phones. Soon a truckload of soldiers in civilian clothes descended on the police chowky and thrashed the cops present there. Members of the public who tried to intervene and photo-journalists who were filming the incident were also assaulted. Local journalists said cameras of a some photographers were also damaged in the incident. In a statement, Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjay Jadhav said cases have been filed against the jawans for abusing and assaulting police personnel. According to agency reports, a court of inquiry has been ordered by the College of Military Engineering into the incident. The Court of Inquiry will be headed by a colonel. The provocation
Pune traffic cops caught two jawans from the College of Military Engineering while they were riding a two-wheeler on the wrong side of a bridge, which was objected to by the cops, resulting in the clash.
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Cong compares Modi rule with Nazi regime New Delhi, February 1 After some Congress leaders, including the Gujarat faction and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikhsit, inadvertently praised Modi’s rule, thereby causing much embarrassment to the party, Congress spokesman Manish Tewari targeted the Gujarat CM by likening his tenure with that of the Nazis. While insisting that he was not drawing any parallel, he said: “The Nazis also built autobahns (German expressways) but what defined the Nazi regime wasn’t those autobahns. It was Auschwitz (concentration camp). It was Treblinka (externation camp). It was ghettos (where Jews were forced to live)”. “Notwithstanding the complete myth of a vibrant Gujarat, ultimately in the final analysis what is going to define the BJP government in Gujarat is the inaction and the culpability in the Gujarat carnage. I am not drawing any parallels, but yes there are certain lessons, which history teaches us,” Tewari said, responding to repeated questions regarding Dikshit’s yesterday’s statement that there were no two opinions that development was taking place in Gujarat. Dikshit, who also said that governments were re-elected because they ensured development.
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New Delhi, February 1 “We have arrested three persons - minor girl’s father and a couple, who forced her into prostitution. The father has been charged for cruelty and abandoning her while the couple has been charged with forcing her into flesh trade,” said Ajay Choudhry, Additional Commissioner of Police (South-East). Those arrested have been identified as Jitender Gupta, girl’s father, and the couple, Sandeep Pandey and Pooja. A senior police official said they had stepped up efforts to trace Rajkumar. The girl was sexually abused by several men. Pooja had taken her to Etah in Uttar Pradesh where she was allegedly forced to marry an old man. — PTI
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New Delhi, February 1
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