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If peace persists, troops will be withdrawn from J&K: Shinde
Shortage of firing ranges jeopardising Army’s combat readiness
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13,000-page chargesheet filed against Jundal in 26/11 case
Attack
on Israeli diplomat
Iran denies link with Pak N-proliferation network
India pledges $50 m for biodiversity conservation
Yeddyurappa indicted for illegal land deals
India to enhance defence ties with Indonesia
No development fee at Delhi, Mumbai airports from Jan 1
Sachan’s wife moves court, seeks copy of closure report
Lifting of tourism ban brings relief to U’khand
Trouble seems to follow Ashok Khemka
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If peace persists, troops will be withdrawn from J&K: Shinde
Manesar, October 16 This was stated by Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde while talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the National Security Guard (NSG)’s 28th Raising Day function here today. Shinde, who visited J&K recently, said the people were coming forward to maintain normalcy in the state. “It’s a positive sign. We will withdraw armed forces from J&K if the situation continues to be peaceful and we get people’s support and cooperation,” said the Home Minister. Shinde lauded the crucial role played by the NSG in maintaining the internal security. NSG Director General Subhash Joshi said substantial funds have been provided for the modernisation of the force. ‘Black Cat’ commandos put up a show of their skills. It included a free-fall by 10 commandos from a height of 5,000 feet, a counter-hijack drill, display of latest state-of-the-art equipment like remotely operated vehicles, unarmed aerial vehicle, total containment vehicle, unarmed combat, karate skills and canine expertise. Women NSG commandos also performed breathtaking daredevil acts like slithering from helicopter and VIP protection drill. Shinde honoured the family members of the NSG personnel who had lost their lives in various operations and paid tributes to the martyrs. He also released a coffee table book titled “Memoirs” based on the life and experiences of NSG personnel.
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Shortage of firing ranges jeopardising Army’s combat readiness
New Delhi, October 16 States are holding back re-notification of ranges on one premise or the other. The Army Commanders suggested that the training schedules should be prepared in such a manner that the existing ranges can be utilised to the optimum level. As of today, 14 cases of re-notifying the existing ranges are pending with state governments. There is a shortage of filed firing ranges (FFRs) in the armed forces. Around 10 years ago, the Army had 104 ranges. But the number at present is just 66, including 12 acquired and 54 notified ranges. Over the past 10 years, 38 field firing ranges have been taken away from the Army and re-notified. FFRs need to be re-notified from time-to-time by the respective state governments after clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF). Due to increasing population, spread of habitation, general development, encroachments, carving out of new wildlife sanctuaries/reserve forests and other environmental pressures, state governments generally find it difficult to re-notify ranges in their jurisdiction. Sources pointed out two peculiar instances. In the Kargil-Batalik sector of Ladakh, heavy artillery is positioned facing Pakistan across the Line of Control (LoC). The gunners need to be put through the practice of firing every few months to keep them "battle-ready". Since the terrain is so harsh, the only option is to fire at ranges available in Ladakh. Re-notification has not been done since 2003 for the range at Nubra near Siachen glacier. Notifications for four other ranges at Kulum, Tartar, Kharbuthang and Mahe will expire in 2014. In Kashmir, there is another issue related to the FFR at Toshe Maidan. The state government wants it back, the Army says it is the only high-attitude range and is vital for troops located close to the
LoC.
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13,000-page chargesheet filed against Jundal in 26/11 case
Mumbai, October 16 Ansari, who was deported from Saudi Arabia, has been named as a member of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and the main conspirator in the case. The charge sheet, which runs into more than 13,000 pages and has 56 volumes, details his role in executing the terror attacks. The statement of Jundal, who confessed to his role following his deportation, has also been included in the charge sheet, police sources said. Jundal, who is charged with briefing the terrorists who carried out the attacks, has been accused of staying in regular contact with the attackers as they went about their mission in Mumbai. The police says he along with others, including Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and others was present in a “control room” in Karachi from where instructions were sent to the attackers. Also named in the charge sheet is Hafeez Saeed, who heads the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, another terror organisation based in Pakistan. A resident of Beed in Maharashtra, Jundal is accused of providing information about Mumbai to the attackers. Police transcripts of the confrontation between Ajmal Kasab, the lone terrorist to be taken alive, and Jundal have also been included in the charge sheet.
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Iran rejects charge of not helping India in probe
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, October 16 Talking to mediapersons here, Iran's Deputy Minister for Asia and Oceania Seyyed Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had received official documents from the Delhi Police only two days ago, suggesting the involvement of four Iranian nationals in the attack. “We are ready to extend our full cooperation to India in the matter,” he said. A Delhi Police team had visited Iran in mid-August to pursue investigations into the case. The Iranian authorities say the Delhi Police had showed them some papers at that time, but did not submit any document. After a long delay, the documents were finally handed over to the Iranian authorities by the Indian envoy in Tehran two days ago. Araghchi said the attack on the diplomat must have been orchestrated by the Israelis themselves to discredit Iran.
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Iran denies link with Pak N-proliferation network
New Delhi, October 16 “We have nothing to do with the A Q Khan network...we are pursuing a peaceful nuclear programme to meet our needs. Nuclear weapons have no place in our security doctrine,” Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Asia and Oceania Seyyed Abbas Araghchi told a select group of journalists here this morning. He is here for the 13th round of India-Iran political and strategic dialogue with Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai. Speaking in a conciliatory tone, Araghchi said the US must realise that extreme steps like sanctions would not resolve the ongoing stand-off between the West and his country over its nuclear programme. A solution to the issue could only be found through negotiations. “We are a member of the NPT...we only want them (US) to realise that Iran has the right to peaceful uses of nuclear technology...our doors are open for negotiations.” Another reason why Iran was not keen on acquiring nuclear weapons was that such a development could trigger a nuclear race in the region. The Iranian minister admitted that the US and the EU sanctions had indeed affected the Islamic republic but asserted that such steps could not force his country to give up its nuclear
programme.
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India pledges $50 m for biodiversity conservation
Hyderabad, October 16 The package was unveiled by the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, while addressing the United Nations’ Convention on Biodiversity. “We will use these funds to enhance technical and human capabilities of our national and state-level mechanisms to attain the Convention on Biological Diversity objectives. We have also earmarked funds to promote similar
capacity building in developing countries, he told the delegates attending the 11th Conference of Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD). The Prime Minister made a strong pitch for “concerted global action” to achieve biodiversity targets and finding a common ground on environmental issues. Stating that India had recently ratified the Nagoya Protocol, an international, legally-binding treaty on biodiversity conservation and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources, he urged
the member countries to do the same. “A concerted global action is imperative and cannot brook any further delay. Despite global efforts, the 2010 biodiversity target that we had set for ourselves under the Convention on Biological Diversity was not fully met. This situation needs to change,” Singh said. Over 8,000 delegates from 193 countries are participating in the 19-day-long conference being held at the Hyderabad international Convention Centre (HICC) here.
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Yeddyurappa indicted for illegal land deals
New Delhi/Bangalore,October 16 The chargesheet also includes Yeddyurappa’s sons BY Vijayendra and BY Raghavendra, son-in-law RN Sohan Kumar, former minister Krishnaiah Setty and others. Besides, the CEO and senior vice-president of Bellary-based JSW Steels Ltd, Shimoga-based Prerana Educational and Social Trust run by Yeddyurappa's family and five other private firms in Bellary have been chargesheeted for alleged abuse of official position and corruption. The chargesheet names JSW Steel boss Sajjan Jindal’s as an accused. Jindal, chairman and managing director of the JSW group, is the brother of Congress MP Naveen Jindal and son of Congress MLA from Hisar Savitri Jindal. JSW Group said in a statement that “the conclusions drawn by the said authorities (CBI) leading to chargesheet are without basis”. The case was filed by the CBI pursuant to a Supreme Court directive on May 11. The suspects have been charged under Section 120-B read with 109, 420, 468, 471 of the IPC; Sections 7, 9, 11, 12, 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and Section 9 read with Section 4 of the Karnataka Land (Restriction on) Transfer Act. The CBI said the chargesheet had been filed after a detailed investigation in the case and collection of relevant evidence. During investigation, the agency came to know that the accused had allegedly hatched a criminal conspiracy during 2006-2010. Yeddyurappa's sons and his son-in-law had purchased a piece of land for Rs 40 lakh, which was notified for acquisition by the Karnataka Government. The land was de-notified from acquisition by the then Chief Minister by allegedly abusing his official position in violation of various government rules. The land was then sold at an exorbitant rate of Rs 20 crore to JSW Steels Limited even though the guidance value of the land was Rs 1.5 crore. The CBI said the investigation had also revealed that Rs 20 crore was allegedly a cover-up to the illegal gratification received from the Bellary-based private company as a quid pro quo for not insisting for the recovery of Rs 890 crore from the company for the loss caused to public sector undertaking Mysore Minerals Limited. Further, the Bellary-based private company allegedly paid through its sister companies a sum of Rs 20 crore as a donation to the Trust run by Yeddyurappa's kin, the CBI said.
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India to enhance defence ties with Indonesia
This was the first ministerial-level biennial defence dialogue between the two countries which lasted nearly two hours. The two sides exchanged views on a whole range of issues relating to regional and global security, bilateral exercises involving training, co-production of defence equipment and ammunition and high-level visits, MoD spokesperson Sitanshu Kar said in an emailed communiqué from Indonesia.
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No development fee at Delhi, Mumbai airports from Jan 1
New Delhi, October 16 The government also directed the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to infuse more equity in the two joint ventures -- GMR-led Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) and GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL). In simpler words, passengers flying out of Delhi and Mumbai would now have to pay less. Currently, an ADF is charged at the rate of Rs 200 per domestic and Rs 1,300 per international passenger at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. At the Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai, an ADF is charged at the rate of Rs 100 and Rs 600 for domestic and international passenger, respectively. The Aviation Minister said the objective of the government was to make air travel affordable and ensure that the passengers were not subjected to any extra burden. The move follows a similar direction to the AAI not to pursue its proposal to levy ADF at Chennai and Kolkata Airports, which are being modernised now. Passengers will, however, continue to pay user development fee (UDF). While ADF is levied to meet cash flow requirements before completion of an airport upgrade project, UDF is charged for using the completed facility.
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Sachan’s wife moves court, seeks copy of closure report
Lucknow, October 16 Herself a medical doctor, Malti Sachan today moved an application in the court
of Special Judicial Magistrate (CBI) Neelkant Mani Tripathi not only seeking a copy of the September 28 CBI closure report but also questioning the very investigation into her husband's mysterious death inside the Lucknow jail on June 22, 2011. The 120-page closure report claims that during the probe no evidence had come on record indicating the death of Sachan inside the jail to be a case of homicide.
Y S Sachan, a prime accused in the murder of the two CMOs of the family health department and the related multi-crore financial irregularities in the NRHM, was found dead inside the Lucknow jail. Malti Sachan’s counsel VK Shahi moved the application which charged the CBI with conducting the investigation into the Sachan murder case in a biased and politically motivated manner in order to protect the well-connected real culprits in the case.
The applicant has pleaded that she was unaware of the parameters on which the CBI investigated the murder as a copy of the closure report had not been provided to her.
While the court ordered to make a copy of the CBI closure report available to the Malti Sachan’s counsel, it also permitted him to examine the records submitted by the CBI.
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Lifting of tourism ban brings relief to U’khand
Dehradun, October 16 The court on July 24 this year had banned all tourism activities in the core areas of tiger reserves. The decision than had come as a major jolt to Uttarakhand, and the state Forest Department, too, had expressed its concern at the development. Corbett Tiger Reserve, on which a large population is dependent to earn a living, was the worst affected. The town of Ramnagar, which is the main gateway for the entry of tourists to Corbett, erupted in protest. The annual turnover of Corbett Tiger Reserve and various large and small business enterprises in and around it sums up to more than Rs 100 crore. Around 20,000 people earn their livelihood from the arrival of nearly two lakh tourists to Corbett every year.
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Trouble seems to follow Ashok Khemka
Chandigarh, October 16 Khemka held a number of good posts like that of MD, Hartron; Director, Supplies and Disposal; Director, Agriculture as well as that of the Rural Department and Deputy Commissioner of Jhajjar and Kaithal. Besides being a senior officer, entitled to a spacious house, Khemka prefers to reside in a transit flat in Sector 19, Chandigarh. It is not for the first time that the DLF has found itself on the wrong side of Khemka. The DLF had the taste of the wrath of Khemka’s pen in 2004 also. The state government had acquired about 20 acre of panchayat land of Nathupur village in Gurgaon district for public purposes. Later the government headed by Om Prakash Chautala of the INLD sought to transfer the land to the DLF for about Rs 4 crore. Khemka, as Director, Information Technology department, which had acquired the land, objected to the proposed transfer of the land to the DLF. The Congress, which was in opposition then, submitted a memorandum based on the objections of Khemka to the then Governor, seeking his intervention to stall the transfer. Irked over Khemka’s action, he was transferred by the INLD government to a non-descript post with no official vehicle. Khemka started going to office on foot or a cycle. An embarrassed government hurriedly provided him an official vehicle. It goes to the credit of Khemka that he speaks his mind without bothering who is in power. He had taken on the Chautala government at the time when his colleagues were mortally afraid of the then Chief Minister. So much so, when a senior bureaucrat, Bhaskar Chatterjee, was placed under suspension days before the Assembly elections were to be declared, the Haryana IAS Officers Association wanted to adopt a resolution to condemn the suspension. However, it kept on postponing the meeting till the day the Election Commission announced the poll dates and the model code of conduct came into force. While Khemka has his fans among the bureaucracy, there are many of his colleagues who describe him as “a misguided Patriot missile”. He has been empanelled as Joint Secretary in the Central Government. Though his name was recommended by the state for Central deputation, there were no takers for him in the Union Government. His supporters say Khemka does his homework meticulously before taking on the government or his superiors. His orders seldom suffer from any legal infirmity. However, this time some of his colleagues say he has gone overboard. There was no need for him to mention various media reports in his order of October 12 (issue one day after his transfer on October 11) asking the Deputy Commissioners-cum-Registrars of Gurgaon, Mewat, Faridabad and Palwal to probe the properties owned by Vadra or his companies for under-valuation. They say even without mentioning the media reports, he had the authority to order such a probe. Similarly, his critics say, he should not have gone into various procedures adopted by the Town and Country Planning Department while granting LOI/license or renewing the license when he cancelled the mutation of the sale deed between Vadra’s company and the DLF on October 15. The cancellation would have stood the legal test if the Assistant Consolidation Officer, who sanctioned the mutation, was not authorised to do so, as claimed by Khemka in his order. The fact that he issued these orders after his transfer may be against the bureaucratic propriety but it does not affect the legality of the orders.
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The situation in Jammu and Kashmir has remained largely peaceful over the past year and the Union Government will withdraw Army as well as paramilitary forces deployed there if peace continues to prevail in the Valley.
Hyderabad, October 16
The dwindling number of firing ranges for use by tank regiments, mechanised units, artillery gun batteries and mortar fire parties was discussed at the ongoing Army Commanders Conference here today.
New Delhi, October 16