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Suryanelli case: Government backs Kurien in Rajya Sabha
Railway employee burnt alive after train runs over two children
US foster care restores
Indian toddler to family
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India financed problems for Pakistan in Afghanistan: US Defence nominee
RS to debate copter issue today
A musical journey into Guinness Book
Parliament passes sexual harassment Bill
Oppn dubs it 'Rae Bareli Budget'
Mumbai may get AC trains
Students not at ‘disadvantage’ in percentile system
UP shifts 91 IPS, 51 IAS officers
Schoolteacher held for molesting 22 students
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Suryanelli case: Government backs Kurien in Rajya Sabha
New Delhi, February 26 Even as the Left parties walked out of the House protesting against what they called executive’s attempt to defend the legislature, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath asserted that police inquiries and courts have cleared Kurien of all charges. “A section of media and some political members have sought to drag Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Kurien in a rape case. It has emphatically been stated that he has never been accused in the Suryanelli rape case,” Nath said in a statement the Upper House. Shortly after the House reassembled after the lunch recess, Nath rose to make the statement on the issue. CPM member Sitaram Yechuri immediately interjected, saying the government had no business to come to the rescue of the Deputy Chairman. If Kurien desired, he could make a statement himself. “Let him (Kurien) come and defend. We cannot accept the executive defending the officer of legislature and undermining the sanctity of the Constitution,” Yechury said. With Nath insisting on making the statement in compliance with the direction of the Chair, Yechury led the Left members in walking out of the House. In his statement, the minister gave a detailed account of the sequence of events related to the 17-year-old Suryanelli rape case since the time FIR was filed and how several police enquiries and judicial processes “acquitted” Kurien of all charges.
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Railway employee burnt alive after train runs over two children
Vidisha (MP), February 26 Siblings Mohammad Ali (5) and Icra (8) were run over by a speeding Sampark Kranti Express at Gulabganj station, about 20 km from here, when they were crossing the tracks in the absence of a foot over-bridge, railway sources said. The incident came on a day when Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal presented his maiden budget in the Lok Sabha that included a slew of safety measures. Sources said the incident apparently occurred as the railway staff failed to make an announcement about the fast-approaching Sampark Kranti Express, which does not halt at Gulabganj. Earlier reports suggested that the children got crushed by a goods train, which moved suddenly when they were crossing from under it. As the news spread, angry villagers disrupted rail traffic by blocking both up and down tracks and then set on fire the station building, trapping assistant station master Sanket Bansal and point supervisor Bhagwan Das inside. A team from the nearby police station reached the scene but by then both had received serious burn injuries. While Das succumbed before he could receive medical help, Bansal was shifted to Bhopal in critical condition. Several trains were halted at Bina, Bhopal and Vidisha stations after the protest, which paralysed train services on the busy Delhi-Chennai route for over four hours. Vidisha collector Anand Sharma and Superintendent of Police BP Chandrawanshi intervened and persuaded the villagers to call off the protest. A demonstration was also staged at the Bhopal railway station with protesters demanding registration of a murder case against those responsible for the Gulabganj tragedy.
— PTI
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US foster care restores
Indian toddler to family
New Delhi, February 26 They used this charge to put Indrashish in foster care where his parents often found him injured during weekly visitations. Till today, the Sahas were living in constant fear -- if their child wasn’t restored from Jersey foster care within 12 months of placement, he could be put up for adoption in the US. “It was a nightmare. While Indrashish was with his fosterer, we had no say. Our requests to talk to him on Skype and let him attend Durga Puja went unheeded. We could meet him for two hours every Friday and our requests for Saturday visits were not allowed,” Debashish Saha, an engineer with IBM, told TNS from New Jersey today. Indrashish was separated from his parents on September 6 last after being admitted to a hospital for treatment of head injury sustained from a fall. Pamela’s insistence that the fall was accidental failed to impress New Jersey officers, who argued in court that the injuries were consistent with Shaken Baby Syndrome and deliberate. Suranya Aiyar, a Delhi-based lawyer, involved with the case, says, “The Shaken Baby Syndrome theory has been refuted worldwide, but the US bureaucracy still cites it to place children in foster care.” Indrashish was hospitalised on August 9, 2012, and just when his parents thought they could take him back home, Jersey child authorities, who had been interrogating them, moved court saying they had concerns over the child moving back with his parents.
The separation
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India financed problems for Pakistan in Afghanistan: US Defence nominee
New Delhi, February 26 Hagel, during the speech, said: “India for some time has always used Afghanistan as a second front, and India has over the years financed problems for Pakistan on that side of the border.” “And you can carry that into many dimensions, the point being the tense, fragmented relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has been there for many, many years,” Hagel said. Reacting to this, the Indian Embassy in Washington said: “Such comments attributed to Senator Hagel, who has been a long-standing friend of India and a prominent votary of close India-US relations, are contrary to the reality of India’s unbounded dedication to the welfare of Afghan people.” It added that India’s commitment to a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan is unwavering, “and this is reflected in our significant assistance to Afghanistan in developing its economy, infrastructure and institutional capacities”. “Our opposition to terrorism and its safe havens in our neighbourhood is firm and unshakable. “India’s development assistance has been deeply appreciated by the people and the Government of Afghanistan, and by our friends around the world including the US. “We do not view our engagement with Afghanistan as a zero sum game,” the Embassy said. Hagel’s remarks are in sharp contrast to viewpoint of Obama Administration that has always been in praise of India's developmental role in Afghanistan.
India dismisses hagel’s remark
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RS to debate copter issue today
New Delhi, February 26 “We are ready for a discussion on the issue tomorrow,” Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla said today after BJP insisted on an immediate discussion on the issue. Prakash Javadekar of the BJP had raised the matter in the zero hour. Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley said the government should agree to a debate on a particular day, preferably tomorrow, on the issue, after which Shukla said the Defence Minister wanted some more time as more details on the issue were awaited and suggested a discussion by next week. As BJP members, including Venkaiah Naidu, Najma Heptulla and Ravi Shankar Prasad, disagreed and demanded immediate discussion on the deal, Shukla said a debate on farmers’ problems was slated for tomorrow on Naidu’s demand and if he agreed to change it government could discuss the helicopter deal tomorrow.
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A musical journey into Guinness Book
Guwahati, February 26 A large number of singers and musicians got together for the event -- ‘A Musical Journey for World Peace’ -- at Jorhat in eastern Assam. They played 315 musical instruments during the musical journey as accompanying vocalists presented the biggest non-classical symphony of its kind in the world. The earlier record of using the largest number of musical instruments in one such event was 181 at a musical concert in Japan. The event was organised by Mazumba Media and Entertainment and the music presented at the event was composed by Rupam Jyoti Sharma, an engineer from Jorhat who is now based in California, US. The musical soiree that lasted about 45 minutes showcased a rich tapestry of folk and religious melodies from the soil of Assam besides presenting glimpses of Indian classical music, jazz, combination of melodies from Ireland, Latin America etc. Hollywood lyricist and music producer Alan Roy Scott did the honours ‘behind the scene’ during the event while Ken Koshio played the Japanese Takio drum. Jack B Brockbank, an adjucator from the London headquarters of the Guinness World Records, presented the certificate to Rupam Jyoti Sharma in the presence of the artistes, musicians and a cheering audience.
45-minute wonder
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Parliament passes sexual harassment Bill
New Delhi, February 26 Moving the Bill in the Upper House, Women and Child Empowerment Minister Krishna Tirath said the legislation would cover both organised and unorganised sectors and include domestic workers. "The aim is that women are able to work freely whether it is workplace in organised or unorganised sector," she said. The Bill mandates an internal complaint committee for any organisation with 10 or more employees. Employers not adhering to this will attract a penalty of Rs 50,000. Repeated violations may lead to higher penalties and cancellation of licence or registration to conduct business. In case of false or malicious complaint, the Bill provides for action against the complainant in accordance with the service rules and in any other manner if no service rules exist. It will also cover the unorganised sector where the number of workers is less than 10.
What it entails
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Oppn dubs it 'Rae Bareli Budget'
New Delhi, February 26 Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described the Budget as "reformist" and "forward looking", saying it would help in meeting competing demands. "It is a reformist and forward-looking Budget which presents a realistic picture of railway finances," he said. The PM said Bansal had done "a commendable job" in meeting demands of improving services and controlling
expenditure. BJP president Rajnath Singh said the Budget had exposed the UPA government's inability and lack of vision to revive the ailing Railways while his party colleague and former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha said: "This is not a Rail Budget, but Rae Bareli Budget." It was nothing but eyewash since passenger fares had already been hiked by the government. The increase in freight rates was bound to push all-round inflation in the country, the BJP chief said. The CPM said the Budget made no serious effort to overcome the financial crisis affecting the Railways. The crisis was deliberately created over the past three years by enhancing the number of projects, spending on government advertisements, foundation laying ceremonies and other activities, the party
said. BSP leader Mayawati said the Budget ignored the poor and the middle class. She also criticised the Railway Minister for claiming that he did not hike the passenger fare, saying it had already been done.
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Mumbai may get AC trains
Mumbai, February 26 “One rake is being built at Chennai’s Integral Coach Factory,” a senior railway official confirmed. The rake will have to undergo various tests and will be cleared by the Railway Safety Board before being introduced. Each coach, which will have microprocessor-based temperature controlled system, is expected to cost around Rs 4 crore. According to sources, the train will have 12 air-conditioned vestibular coaches which allow for passengers to move from one compartment to another. Each coach will have longitudinal seats allowing for a ‘peak hour load’ of 400 passengers to be accommodated. The trains will run between Borivali in the suburbs and down town Churchgate on the Western Railway section, a distance of 37 km. Railway officials say some coaches will be reserved for women on these trains as well. At present 1/3rd of first and second class railway compartments in the Mumbai suburban section are reserved for women. “The first rake we get will be run on a trial basis and depending on passenger feedback we will carry out alterations in the subsequent rakes,” a WR official said. Railway officials admit that they are yet to gauge the demand for the AC services on the suburban section of the Mumbai railways.
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JEE 2013
New Delhi, February 26 The cut-off percentage for the top 20 percentile calculation in case of Andhra Pradesh Board and other boards (which use marks of both class XI and XII to finalise class XII results) will be calculated on the basis of class XII marks provided by the boards, the ministry said. Under the new JEE, only top 1.5 lakh scorers of the JEE (Main) will be allowed to take JEE (Advanced) for entry to IITs while other central technical institutes such as NITs will select students based on JEE (Main) scores and 60 per cent cut-off marks of class XII. But only those JEE (Advanced) takers will be eligible for entry to IIT all-India merit list who also fall among top 20 percentile of students of the given state board in 2013. The clarification came after K Kireeti challenged JEE 2013 in Andhra Pradesh High Court seeking its suspension on grounds that the 20 percentile norm was unconstitutional. The court did not agree with the contention that the percentile system was unconstitutional. — TNS
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UP shifts 91 IPS, 51 IAS officers
Lucknow, February 26 With this fresh round of transfers, around 3,000 IAS and IPS officers have been shifted during the less than one year tenure of the present SP government. Several of them have undergone three to four transfers during this period.
— TNS
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A railway employee was burnt alive and another suffered serious injuries in violent protests and arson triggered by the running over of two children by a speeding train at the Gulabganj railway station, near here, today.
