New Delhi, October 28
In order to make Delhi free of plastic bags, the Delhi government has set a new deadline of December 22 for stopping the manufacture, sale and storage of plastic bags in the national Capital and its three adjoining territories.

While an order regarding the enforcement of this blanket ban has been issued, the traders, engaged in the work of production and sale of polythene bags, have been instructed to dismantle their manufacturing facilities, said senior officials of the city's environment department.

This time, the government expects better results given the fact that the ban also extends to the manufacturing activities.

"The order regarding the blanket ban has been issued and it will come into effect from December 22. Plastic bags have been causing blockage in sewerage resulting in serious health-related problems," said the officials.

The ban will extend not only to the plastic bags but also to the use of plastic cover/pouch to pack magazines, invitation cards and greeting cards. Any violation of the ban, imposed under the provision of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, will result in an imprisonment up to five years and a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh or both.

The city government had long been planning to implement the ban on plastic bags in various markets, shopping malls, hotels and hospitals, but without satisfactory results.

In 2009, the government exercising the provisions of the Delhi Degradable Plastic Bags (Manufacturing, Sales and Usage) and Garbage (Controlled) Act, 2000, had forbidden the sale, storage and use of all kinds of plastic bags in certain notified places. These places included luxury hotels, hospitals, restaurants, all fruit and vegetable outlets, etc.

New Delhi, October 28
Selling goats in Delhi is an annual affair before Eid-ul-Azha that marks the sacrifice of animals--goat, dumba,camel and buffalo. Prophet Mohammad also sacrificed animals to continue the practice of Prophet Ibrahim in the world.

On this occasion, thousands of animal traders from Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh throng Jama Masjid, Okhla (southeast), Tughlakabad near Majidia Hospital (south) and Seelampur in the Trans-Yamuna area where goats of different species--Jamunapari, Barbara, Punjabi, Mewati, Dang, Ajmeri and Laddakhi are put for sale.

Barbara goat is of small height while Mewati, Ajmeri and Dang goats have a good height. Laddakhi goat is of medium height. Goats of Jamunapari and Punjabi origins are bulky with good height. They weigh 70 to 90 kg with three to four ft height. The high-breed goats, (bharai ka bakra in local parlance) are sold every year near Vishal Ka Dera in Meena Bazar. One goat of this species carries the price tag between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1 lakh.

"The goats were very costly this year. Last year, the lowest rate of a goat was Rs 3,000. At times it becomes difficult to get the buyers," said Vishal who runs the 'dera'.

Rafeeque, who came from Muzaffar Nagar to sell 100 goats, said inflation has affected this trade also. Till last year, one kg gram was available at Rs 30 in the retail market. This year, it costs Rs 60 per kg. Leaves available at Rs 4 per kg last year were sold at Rs 25 per kg. Transportation cost has also increased.

Vishal said that the traders purchased small goats of different species from several areas. Some of them have crossbreeding arrangements at their places outside Delhi.

Mohammad Salim, who had a number of big goats, said he had arrangements to care for animals at home at Brahampuri in northeast Delhi. He brings one-year-old goats, nurtures them for two to three years and then sells them on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha to earn good money. Selling animals at Jama Masjid had been a smooth affair all these years. But this year, the traders preferred to sell them in Seelampur or Okhla as they were not allowed to come on to the footpath along Subhash Park due to security concerns.

Additional Commissioner of Police (Central Delhi) D. C. Srivastava said that keeping in view the movement of traffic on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, the traders were not allowed to bring their animals on road. This decision was taken after consulting the market association.

Many traders also avoided the Jama Masjid area as Meena Bazar Market Association charged Rs 3,500 for 12 days from each trader who had a makeshift trading area under tarpaulin. On the other hand, they did not have to pay rent in Okhla, Seelampur and Tughlakabad markets.

President of Meena Bazar Market Association, Haji Jamaluddin admitted that the association charged Rs 3,500 for each tarpaulin as it had to pay Rs 1.75 lakh to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC). It also pays for tarpaulin that is transported from Agra Cantonment. Fifty to 60 trucks of tarpaulin are transported as we have 400 makeshift shops under tents. The association has to pay between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000 per truck of tarpaulin, said Jamaluddin.

However, a spokesman of the NDMC, Yogender Singh Mann, said that the market association paid just Rs 65,000 to the civic body for 12 days.

New Delhi, October 28
A 46-year-old man was battered to death with an iron rod by a youth on the premises of a gurdwara in the Fatehpur Beri area of south Delhi, the police said today.

The victim was identified as Harvinder Singh. He was also the secretary of a trust linked to the gurdwara, confirmed the police. Harvinder was unmarried and lived with his 68-year-old mother in a flat on the premises of Govind Sadan Gurdwara at Gadaipur village.

The police said Harvinder was attacked by 25-year-old Maninder Singh, alias Kala, on Friday. The accused has been arrested. Harvinder's mother Surjeet, a witness, said that Maninder repeatedly hit her son with an iron rod. He was taken to Fortis Hospital in Vasant Kunj, but declared brought dead by the doctors.

The deceased's mother in a statement to the police alleged that Harvinder was involved in a dispute with the trust members. Five men known to Harvinder-- Kawar Pal, Bakshish Singh, Vikkar Singh, Harvansh Singh and Manjeet Singh--were behind the incident, she said.

According to the police, Maninder knew Harvinder and they used to meet regularly. "Maninder was arrested from the spot and we will ascertain the sequence of events through his interrogation," a police official said.

New Delhi, October 28
A 60-year-old manager of the luxury Royal Rajasthan on Wheels was found dead inside the train this morning. The man has been identified as Om Prakash.

Additional DCP (Railways) Sanjay Bhatia said, "A chai-wala went to give him tea at his cabin in the train at 7 am today. He knocked at the door, but Prakash did not open it. After a while, he informed some railway officials. The officials broke open the door and found hisbody. They informed the police," said a police official.

The report of postmortem revealed that he died after a heart attack, said the official. — TNS

New Delhi, October 28
With the stand-off between the Delhi University administration and teachers still continuing, Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) president Amar Deo Sharma today urged the newly appointed Human Resource Development Minister Pallam Raju to redress their grievances, starting from the implementation of reservation policy at the entry-level appointments to the rollback of the former minister's ambitious educational reforms, in particular the meta concept.

According to DUTA, the reforms have highlighted the undemocratic functioning of the Vice-Chancellor while the ill-conceived examination reforms have affected the credibility of exams.

On the 19th consecutive day of the strike with teachers from other colleges and departments like Rajdhani College, Department of Modern Indian Languages and Deshbandhu College also joining in for the strike today, the teachers' body announced a combined march of students, teachers and karmacharis on October 31 when the relay hunger strike will culminate in the burning of the effigy of Vice-Chancellor.