New Delhi, February 25
The Delhi government today said that it has liberalized the eligibility conditions of various social sector schemes such as Delhi Swarojgar Yojana, Transport Loan Scheme and Composite Loan Scheme.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit distributed cheques and licences of light commercial vehicles to 61 persons belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Caste (OBC) in a function organized by Delhi SC/ST/OBC/Minorities/Handicapped Financial and Development Corporation (DSFDC).

Tata Ace, Maxi Cab, Mahindra Champion vehicles were handed over to a few persons and loans given to 61 persons.

Dikshit said that the government has directed the corporation to grant loans to women also so that they may initiate self-employment ventures.

Under the Composite Loan Scheme, eligible members are granted loan to start any permissible income-generating, non-polluting activity. Under the Delhi Swarojgar Yojana, members of the above-stated categories are granted loan up to Rs 5 lakh for starting any permissible non-polluting activity.

The Transport Loan Scheme provides a loan up to Rs 5 lakh for plying commercial goods carriers.

“In respect of all the three schemes, the members of SC/ST are eligible for non-refundable subsidy of 50 per cent of the loan or Rs 10,000 whichever is less,” said Minister of Welfare for SC/ST Raj Kumar Chauhan.

Chauhan stated that the government has liberalized the terms and conditions so that the funds could be fully utilized. The clause relating to the guarantor for the loan has also been liberalized. 

New Delhi, February 25
Delhi University (DU) is all set to start an international student exchange programme for credit-based studies. The proposed programme will be conducted in alliance with Sciences Po University in Paris, which is known for its courses in social sciences.

Sources at DU said that the two universities have signed a contract to expand the exchange programme with St Stephen’s College, in order to cover other colleges and departments of DU as well.

According to the sources, this joint venture will involve a credit-based system, in which students from both the universities will be able to visit each other, for a semester. However, the credits earned by a particular student will be assigned to the home university.

The exchange programme will offer an opportunity to students to study in Paris without having to incur tuition and travel costs.

“According to the signed agreement, students of both the universities will get respective credits back. This means that they will not only exchange their knowledge, ideas and values, but also be able to earn credits for their work done in the foreign university. Main objective of this educational alliance is to increase student mobility. It also involves giving students the opportunity to make better and informed choices for their future,” said a senior DU official.

“The opportunities of a particular country can only be understood by knowing its social structure, economic or political issues, its job markets, etc. This programme can be very beneficial for aspiring youngsters,” he added.

New Delhi, February 25
The Resident Welfare Associations are up in arms against the private distribution companies in Delhi, which have allegedly billed the consumers an additional Rs 4,500 crore in the last five years for the electricity never supplied.

According to a report by NGO Chetna, the discoms have been billing the consumers Rs 900 crore annually for five years by charging for the electricity generated through residual back flow caused by the absence of ‘three-phased neutrals’ in lakhs of electronic metres.

The residents demanded setting up of a committee comprising technical experts from Delhi IIT and Roorkee IIT besides financial experts to examine the issue.

“The discoms have collected a whopping Rs 4,500 crore in the last five years for power that was never supplied,” said Anil Sood, president of Chetna.

However, the discoms have rejected the report.

Demanding immediate action against the discoms, Rajiv Kakria of Greater Kailash - I RWA said they came to know about the ‘big fraud’ while going through the official data on the electricity supplied through transformers in certain areas and the amount of bills.

“The data of 327 transformers of Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd which showed negative loss which means the discom charged the consumers much more than the electricity supplied,” he said.

New Delhi, February 25
To much reprieve for the Delhi government, the matter of notorious Asha Kiran listed for hearing in the Supreme Court today has been pushed to July while the city’s Social Welfare Minister Kiran Walia pulled up the public works department (PWD) for delaying the work of augmenting the shelter capacity.

Taking stock of the situation, the minister issued a fresh deadline of April-end for the upgradation at Nirmal Chaya where 100 women inmates are to be shifted and Utkarsh Home at Narela that is expected to house 200 such children. In the case of the two dormitories under construction at the Asha Kiran complex for transferring 160 women, the given time is June-end.

These instructions came following a review of the progress of projects of Asha Kiran, the lone government-run home for the mentally challenged at Avantika. They are part of the Delhi government’s face-saving step in response to the reprimand of the Delhi High Court last year on issues of the home’s over-crowding, unhabitable and unhygienic living conditions. It seems the trouble of the home is not over yet.

Amidst allegations of inappropriate dealings against the home’s administration by the insiders, followed by internal bickering, two transfers last week and then resignation by the institute’s administrator Dr VM Agarwal, the welfare of the inmates seems to have gone for a toss.

Prior to this, in a flurry of developments, there have been two transfers almost back-to-back on February 13 that of a social welfare officer and driver of the chief medical officer apparently on “grounds of misconduct” and a similar order was issued to an upper divisional clerk last month.

However, when asked, the minister termed the transfers to be routine and while denying knowledge of any allegation against the administration, she said, “The resignation is yet to be accepted. He expressed problems in travelling so far. We are looking at improving the conditions of Asha Kiran and shifting the inmates at the proposed three places.”

Currently, the home houses nearly 970 inmates—three times its capacity (350) and is faced with a severe crunch of staff, including welfare officers and special educators.