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Phasing out obsolete tech is Army Chief’s priority
1984 RIOTS
UP overdrew 1,500 MW on July 31
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Schools to IITs, India battles severe faculty crunch
Renewable energy can be the way out of power mess
Wind power: India ranks No. 5
3-yr time limit for compassionate appointment done away with
Gorkha Territorial Authority poll
Allow representation on pay panel, say Service chiefs
tirumala temple
Army says its man ‘guilty’ of molestation will be punished
Coastal radars installation
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Phasing out obsolete tech is Army Chief’s priority
New Delhi, August 2 The key issue is of the pending Mountain Strike Corps, the biggest force accretion plan for the Army, in the past two decades, sources said. The Corps will include a new set of artillery guns, light attack choppers and special equipment to thwart expected threats emerging from Pakistan and China from across the Himalayas. But this needs more than Rs 40,000 crore. The Chief has told his core teams to focus on speeding up the process, sources said. The Army has an ongoing project of modernisation of equipment, providing new handheld guns and introducing more and more technology in the force. The country’s finances are not so healthy that the entire Rs 30,000-odd crore can be allocated in one go, sources said. “It is about laying out priorities in the order of strategic needs of the forces and not bunching all needs together,” said a functionary, adding that timelines have been laid out and these would be adhered to. Militarily, the Army suffers from shortages that are creating hollowness in its capability to respond effectively. Large part of this is due to old technology and the slow pace of change that has plagued the forces. At the moment, the force is stuck with outdated air-defence guns, an ageing artillery, 30-year-old tank technology and has not seen the next generation of technology shift, among other things. General Bikram Singh, who took over on June 1, has set up a study group that will objectively lay out the General Staff Qualitative Requirements (GSQR). The GSQR is the first step whenever a new weapon, equipment or even specialised clothing is to be purchased. Often, the GSQR’s were far removed from reality and have hindered participation of a wider pool of companies. The Army now has a special cell called the ‘Request for Proposal (RFP) cell’ that is aimed at hastening the modernisation process. An RFP needs to be issued to invite interest from international suppliers. In routine procedures, it takes two years to just process a proposal. The move now is to set targets and priorities, said sources. Instructions have been issued to study the defence procurement procedure and suggest refinements that can be then flagged to the Ministry of Defence for future course corrections. Among the other thrust areas is listed “strengthening our (Army’s) secular fabric and apolitical nature”. This is seen as an important step. Just before the Chief was to take over, charges of “divisions” in the force had the government worried.
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HC ruling on Sajjan Kumar’s plea today
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi, August 2 Justice Pratibha Rani has heard arguments on Sajjan’s petition pleading for confronting Jagdish Kaur, a prime witness, with her statements to GT Nanavati and Ranganath Mishra Commissions. The trial court had rejected Sajjan’s plea on June 2, upon which Kumar challenged it in the High Court with an interim prayer for a stay on the trial. Without granting any stay, the HC had restrained the trial court from pronouncing its verdict till July 27, pending disposal of his plea in the HC. Sajjan challenged the HC ruling in the SC and on July 11, obtained a stay till July 27. The SC had requested the HC to quickly dispose of his plea.
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UP overdrew 1,500 MW on July 31
Shahira Naim/TNS
Lucknow, August 2 Uttar Pradesh's schedule of drawing power on July 31 was merely 2,500 MW at 1 pm. Against this, the state reportedly drew around 4,000 MW from the grid. The northern grid crashed at 1.05 pm. As a cascading effect, the eastern and the northeastern grids also collapsed, bringing life in around 20 northern states to a virtual standstill. The overdrawal was made by the state despite a July 30 Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) order directing it as well as Punjab and Haryana to comply with the directives of the NRLDC for maintaining security of the grid system. Admitting that the state had overdrawn on that day, Director (Operations) of Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) AK Singh ruled out that this could be the sole reason for the collapse of the grid. On earlier occasions, Uttar Pradesh had overdrawn much more than this without impacting the grid. According to him, the grid discipline has to be maintained by the NRLDC, which has the statutory authority to snap power to a state that overdraws. The NRLDC should have reacted to the situation, Singh maintains.
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Schools to IITs, India battles severe faculty crunch
New Delhi, August 2 “About 1.26 million posts of teachers are lying vacant across the country. Another half a million are required to meet the revised pupil-teacher ratio norms under the Right to Education Act. Besides, 0.6 million teachers in the public school system are untrained. Pre-service and in-service training of teachers needs to be mounted in a mission mode under the 12th Five-Year Plan,” HRD Ministry admitted during the Parliamentary Consultative Committee meeting held here on Tuesday. The meeting was organised to discuss the launch of National Mission for Teachers and Training under the 12th Plan. The mission was announced this March 12 by former President Pratibha Patil. The number of untrained teachers in India is 5.02 lakh, the highest being in Bihar (1.65 lakh) followed by 1.24 lakh in UP, 59,000 in Jharkhand, 58,091 in West Bengal; 33,000 in Odisha; 30,519 in Chhattisgarh and 30,525 in Assam. UP has the highest vacancies of teachers (3.12 lakh), followed by Bihar with 2.62 lakh vacancies. That’s not all; government statistics shared with the MPs yesterday show massive faculty crunch at the higher-education level. Central higher educational institutions put together have 27,365 teaching positions out of which 9,986 (36 pc) are vacant. The ministry will soon release findings of teacher and infrastructure availability survey at the higher education level. It will reveal data on shortage in private colleges. That apart, the 40 Central Universities have 6,542 posts lying vacant out of the 16,602 sanctioned. That’s 39 per cent shortage. Top government science, technical and management institutes are facing acute teacher shortage. IITs have 5,092 teaching posts of which 1,611 are vacant; in IIMs, 111 positions out of 638 are vacant; and in NITs, 1,487 positions out of 4,291 are vacant. Percentage faculty shortage works out to be 31, 17 and 34 per cent, respectively, for IITs, IIMs and NITs. The same is true of the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research where 131 teaching posts out of 518 are vacant. In IIITs, half of the faculty positions (104 out of 224) are vacant. “State universities are estimated to face shortages of 40 to 50 per cent in faculty positions,” says the government note to parliamentarians.
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Renewable energy can be the way out of power mess
New Delhi, August 2 Sunlight, wind and water are the most important renewable sources of energy. However, despite immense potential, India’s renewable energy programme continues to be a very small one. While the solar sector’s weakness is attributed to lack of economic viability; environment and land are the major issues for wind energy. MNRE Secretary Gireesh Pradhan says land and environmental issues are a challenge for the growth of wind sector, “but an investor friendly policy framework, coupled with attractive tariff, had provided a strong foundation for the growth of wind sector.” According to CSE’s head of industry and environment programme Chandra Bhushan, apart from grid discipline and setting up systems that ensure that states do not overdraw power, India should consider changing electricity-generation configuration for the stability of the grid. Large-scale installation of renewable energy plants, like wind and solar energy plants, can play a major role in stabilising the grid as their power generation profile, especially that of solar, matches the peak-demand hours in the country. Our grid is weak because it is largely base-load (energy is generated at a constant rate). “We have very little flexibility on peak-load power plants. So when the peak demand surges, we have no source to supply additional electricity to the grid,” he says. Base-load demand is the minimum amount of power that a utility or distribution company must make available to its customers or the amount of power required to meet minimum demands, based on reasonable expectations of customer requirements. Peaking plants, like hydro-based plants, are the direct opposite. They generally run only when there is a peak demand for electricity. Since base-load plants produce energy at a constant rate, they cannot meet the peak-load demand. But the peak-load demand, as during summers and the kharif season, can be met with the help of renewable sources like solar and wind, says Bhushan. “As the peak-load deficit is about 15,000 MW, failures are bound to happen in the absence of grid discipline. Most states do not have any system in place that can stop them from withdrawing more power from the grid than what is allocated. Renewable energy has the potential to provide stability during peak-load periods. For example, solar energy peaks in the afternoon which is also the peak-demand time. But the amount of solar energy produced in the country is so small that it hardly makes any difference,” he adds. More than 80 per cent of the power generated in the country comes from thermal power plants - coal, lignite and gas-based. Another three per cent is from nuclear power plants, while hydropower plants produce about 12-13 per cent (including imports from Bhutan). Only the remaining 2-3 per cent comes from renewable sources, mostly wind and solar. This means India largely relies on base-load power plants- thermal and nuclear. Even some hydropower plants operate at base-loads to meet our electricity needs.
Wind power: India ranks No. 5
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3-yr time limit for compassionate appointment done away with
Chandigarh, August 2 The three-year time limit was prescribed in May 2003. A memorandum issued by the Department of Personnel and Training on July 26 states that the issue has been re-examined in consultation with Ministry of Law and it has been decided to withdraw the instructions issued in 2003. The review of the appointment policy comes in the wake of a judgment by the Allahabad High Court in May 2010. The primary objective for compassionate appointment was to provide immediate assistance to relieve the dependent family of the deceased or medically retired government servant from financial destitution. Memorandum of July 26 also refers to a Supreme Court judgment delivered on April 5, 2011 in Local Administration Department vs M Selvanayagam case, which states, “An appointment made many years after the death of the employee or without due consideration of the financial resources available to his/her dependents and the financial deprivation caused to the dependents as a result of his death, simply because the claimant happened to be one of the dependents of the deceased employee, would be directly in conflict with Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution and hence, quite bad and illegal. In dealing with cases of compassionate appointment, it is imperative to keep this vital aspect in mind.” Instructions issued by the department in 1998 provided that ministries and departments could consider requests for compassionate appointment even where the death or retirement on medical grounds of a government servant took place long back. While considering such belated requests, it was, however, to be kept in view that the concept of compassionate appointment was largely related to the need for immediate assistance to the family of the official in order to relieve it from economic distress. The very fact that the family has been able to manage somehow all these years should normally be taken as adequate proof that the family had some dependable means of subsistence. Therefore, examination of such cases called for a great deal of circumspection and the decision to make appointment on compassionate grounds in such cases was to be taken only at the level of the secretary of the department/ministry concerned. These instructions, according to the memorandum, continued till May 2003. The onus of examining the penurious condition of the dependent family will rest with the authority making compassionate appointment, the new memorandum adds.
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Gorkha Territorial Authority poll Janmukti Morcha Subhrangshu Gupta/TNS
Kolkata, August 2 On August 4, the new members of the GTA board will be sworn in at a function at Darjeeling by Governor MK Narayanan in the presence of the Chief Minister and some members of her Council of Ministers. Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, who was personally invited by Mamata Banerjee, is also likely to attend the function. After the election results were officially announced, GJM general secretary Roshan Giri said the GTA board would now concentrate on developmental works in the hills. The Chief Minister assured GJM chief Bimal Gurung that there would be no dearth of funds for development. The GTA agreement was signed at a tripartite meeting at Plaintail village near Siliguri on July 18, 2011, ending several years of unrest and agitation in Darjeeling. The people of the hills, first under the leadership of Subhas Ghising of the GNLF and later under GJM’s Bimal Gurung, had launched a massive movement at Darjeeling demanding a separate Gorkhaland state for the Gorkhas, a demand which was rejected both by the Centre and the state.
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Allow representation on pay panel, say Service chiefs
New Delhi, August 2 The committee is headed by Cabinet Secretary Ajit Seth and all its members are from the IAS. It has been tasked to look into the demands of the armed forces and submit its report by August 8. The Services have highlighted that they have been wrongly lowered in status and grades following the Sixth Pay Commission report in 2008. Other members of the committee are the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister; the Defence Secretary; Secretary, Expenditure; Secretary, Ex-Servicemen’s Welfare; and Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training. The three Services chiefs, Naval Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma, IAF Chief NAK Browne and Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh, have written letters to Defence Minister AK Antony pressing for the inclusion of a representative on the committee. The committee was formed by the Prime Minister on July 13 after Antony wrote a letter to him on June 25 stating that there was discontentment among serving and retired soldiers over anomalies in pay and pension issues. He also expressed the apprehension to the Prime Minister that if "corrective action" was not taken, the issue might take a "bad turn". The terms of reference of the committee will be to look into the following issues relating serving personnel: common pay scale for in-service JCOs and other ranks; initial pay fixation of Lt Col, Colonel and Brigadier equivalent; review and enhancement of grade pay; placing of all Lt Generals and equal ranks of the Navy and the IAF in HAG plus scale; and grant of non-functional upgradation (NFU). The committee will look into the following issues of ex-servicemen: one rank one pension, enhancement of family pension, dual family pension and family pension to mentally/physically challenged children of armed forces personnel on marriage.
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‘Declaration of faith’ by non-Hindu visitors now mandatory
Suresh Dharur/TNS
Hyderabad, August 2 The State Endowments Department has issued an order to this effect. According to the GO 311, it will be mandatory for all non-Hindus to submit the declaration before entering the hill shrine. Though the practice has been in vogue for several decades with non-Hindu celebrities signing such declaration forms, the temple authorities have so far not made it a mandatory provision. The latest decision comes in the backdrop of a recent controversy over the YSR Congress Party president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, a devout Christian, entering the Tirumala Temple without signing the declaration. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which manages the affairs of the country’s richest shrine, had come under fire from different political parties and religious organisations for allowing a practicing Christian into the temple in violation of the rules. While Jagan’s supporters contended that he was not required to sign the register again as he had already done so during his earlier visit to the temple in 2009, the TTD drew flak for its leniency in implementing the rule. The recent arrest of three TTD employees on charges of practicing and propagating “another religion” on Tirumala Hills, and subsequent strong reaction from various quarters, was also said to have prompted the temple authorities to reinforce the norms pertaining to non-Hindus in order to avoid further embarrassment. Making the announcement, the TTD joint executive officer KS Srinivasa Raju said it would, henceforth, be compulsory for all non-Hindus to sign the declaration. “The declaration forms will be made available not only at the queue complex but also at the enquiry counters and the office of the joint executive officer (JEO). If a non-Hindu is found to be violating this rule, he or she will not be allowed to have darshan of the Lord,” the temple official said. Nestled among a string of seven hills, Tirumala Temple attracts an average of 60,000 pilgrims every day and the number crosses the one lakh mark on special occasions and festival days.
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Army says its man ‘guilty’ of molestation will be punished
Guwahati, August 2 The incident that happened at Panidihing Dolpa village under Dimow police station on July 13 sparked a mass agitation led by Assam Tai Ahom Students Union (ATASU) and several women organisations which are demanding exemplary punishment to the
jawan identified as Anil Kumar Upadhyay. The intensity of the protests — with the agitators even threatening to take out a naked rally in Sivasagar town — forced the administration to offer a job to the victim at
the State Institute of Rural Development at Sivasagar. The open letter issued by the GOC, DAO Division, Indian Army,
said that the Army court would definitely punish the guilty in a short time and that the girl would
get justice. The GOC stated, “I can understand your anguish against the molestation. Crime against women must be curbed and exemplary punishment given to the culprits. I would go further to state that this should be done ‘fast track’ as justice delayed is justice denied. “It is to ensure speedy justice that we took over the case from the civil court. The suspect is currently in our unit lock-up and within a week of taking over the case, our inquiry has been completed. As soon as the sanction is received, the trial will begin.”
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Complete Phase I in 2 months: Antony
New Delhi, August 2 The first two radars are ready and Antony, after carrying out a review, today said he would himself visit some locations soon. The chain of 46 coastal radars is an important component of the coastal security mechanism which will ensure monitoring and identification of maritime traffic. — TNS
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New Delhi, August 2
The latest government data reveals disturbing trends for the promised future expansion of the school and higher education sectors.
The government on Wednesday said India was fifth in the world with total installed wind power capacity of about 17,600 MW. Speaking at the round-table on Wind Power Programme, MNRE secretary Gireesh Pradhan said: “India stands 5th in the world in terms of total installed wind power capacity of about 17,600 MW. The government is promoting commercial wind power projects through private sector investments by providing fiscal incentives such as 10-year tax holiday on income generation from renewable projects, excise duty exemption for manufacture of wind electric generators and parts.”