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100 small airports by 2020, says PM
Police sets up 12 teams to trace IM terrorist
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Muzaffarnagar Mayhem
Rajnath, UP lawmakers to meet President today
Riots a blot on Akhilesh’s political career: Ramesh
TDP chief for early resolution on Telangana
Naidu meets Rajnath
ishrat case
JPC meet on 2G now scheduled for Sept 27
RBI Governor has ‘asphyxiated’ investor: Swamy
Farmers demand better MSP for paddy
Another building collapse in Mumbra
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100 small airports by 2020, says PM
Kishangarh (Ajmer), September 21 The first such airport will come up in Kishangarh town in Rajasthan’s Ajmer district, the Prime Minister said after laying the foundation stone for the development of the airport, which is scheduled to get operational by 2016. “An ambitious scheme to develop a network of 100 smaller airports in the country is being implemented. Focus earlier was on developing airports in metro cities and now more than 100 airports will be set up in small towns and cities,” he said. “This will enhance air connectivity in the country. Kishangarh airport will be the first project under this scheme,” he said, adding that it will also meet the requirement of increasing passenger load which is expected to be around 30 crores by 2020. The Prime Minister said the Kishangarh airport, to be set up at an estimated cost of 161 crore in the first phase, will accelerate economic growth in the area. “Ajmer is a noted tourist destination having famous Dargah of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti and Brahma temple in Pushkar town. Besides, the region is known for industries, including that of marble, and the new project of airport will push economic growth,” he said. The Prime Minister said passenger load had increased significantly and the trend would continue. “The number of air passengers was 16 crore last year and it is estimated to increase by 30 crore by the end of 2020. We will have to put more efforts to meet the requirement and both government and private sectors need to make heavy investment for this,” he said. Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh highlighted the importance of air connectivity in smaller destinations and said his ministry was now working in this direction. “There are small airports in several cities but lack services. We now plan to start services at such airports in order to enhance connectivity,” the Minister said. Kishangarh town, famous for marble industry, is located on NH-8 near Ajmer city. The civil airport, to be set by the Airports Authority of India, in the town will have 2,000 m runway and a capacity to handle 150 passengers. The terminal building has been planned on modular concept with modern facilities. Six check-in counters, one security check unit and parking capacity of 125 cars have been provided. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot, Union Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Sachin Pilot were among others present. — PTI
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Police sets up 12 teams to trace IM terrorist
Mumbai, September 21 Usmani, who was brought to attend a hearing from the Taloja jail outside Mumbai where he was lodged, managed to escape during the lunch break on Friday. The police has set up 12 teams to search for Usmani. Police teams have been sent out to a number of places in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh where he is believed to have set up a network of contacts, police said. Earlier today, police teams searched a number of places in Raigad district which is accessible from the Gateway of India by ferry. However, so far it is not clear in which direction Usmani escaped after slipping away from the court premises. Police said, the Raigad police has been asked to look out for Usmani. However, a large number of tourists rushing to Alibag on the other side of the Gateway of India for the weekend have made the job of the police difficult, say sources. In the past also Usmani escaped from police custody. Earlier, he escaped to Pakistan. Police feel that Usmani may again flee to that country, via Bangladesh or Nepal, after making his way to Bihar. Police say they are checking all the major railway, land and water routes.
No CCTV footage
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2 more UP MLAs arrested
Tribune News Service
Lucknow, September 21 The police had yesterday arrested BJP MLA Suresh Rana in Lucknow an hour after the Assembly session was adjourned. Sardhana MLA Sangeet Singh Som, charged with circulating fake CDs and delivering provocative speeches, surrendered before the police amid fanfare at his ancestral Salava village in Meerut district. A Muzaffarnagar court later remanded Som in 14-day judicial custody. Hundreds of MLA’s supporters created a ruckus outside the court, forcing the police to detain six of them. The CJM court also remanded BSP legislator Noor Saleem Rana, who represents the Charthawal Assembly constituency in Muzaffarnagar, in judicial custody. The CJM court further rejected Suresh Rana’s anticipatory bail and remanded him in judicial custody. The three cases will now come up for hearing on September 24. The police is yet to arrest 13 of the 16 political figures against whom the CJM court had issued arrest warrants on September 18. They include BSP MP Qadir Rana, BSP MLA Jameel Ahmed, Congress leader Saeduzzaman, BJP MLA Kunwar Bhartendu, and Bhartiya Kisan Union leaders Rakesh Tikait and Naresh Tikait. Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) RK Vishwakarma said the police had avoided arresting the MLAs on the Vidhan Sabha premises during the monsoon session for administrative reasons. Under the Vidhan Sabha rules, the Speaker has to be informed about the arrest of a sitting MLA when the House is in session, he said. The BJP has called for a Muzaffarnagar bandh tomorrow in protest against its MLAs’ arrest. The total number of deaths in the communal violence in the western UP districts rose to 49 today after one more person died at the Army Hospital in Delhi.
13 still free
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Rajnath, UP lawmakers to meet President today
New Delhi, September 21 Demanding President’s Rule in the state, Rajnath said the current situation in Muzaffarnagar was similar to the period of Emergency. “We want to give the President real details of the situation there,” he said. The BJP, which is crying foul over the way its MLAs were being “selectively targeted” by the Samajwadi Party, maintains none of its legislators was involved in inciting communal violence that left many dead and homeless. “Innocent” people were being arrested to veil the involvement of actual perpetrators of violence, said Rajnath, who was asked to cancel his Muzaffarnagar visit in view of tension following the arrest of two BJP legislators. Officials said the BJP chief was requested by the District Magistrate not to visit the city through a fax message that said the visit could disturb peace in the area. Though the party singularly held the Akhilesh government responsible for failing to protect people in the area, sources said Rajnath did not want to take the risk of any blame of any untoward incident that might be “engineered” to target the BJP. The decision was seconded by party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and his key aide Amit Shah — who is in charge of the UP affairs. Rajnath, who went all out to blame the SP for the situation in the state, said: “Going by the history of riots, we can see that whenever the SP comes to power, a series of communal riots begin in UP.” While Suresh Rana was arrested on Friday, Sangeet Som surrendered in Sardhana amid high drama today. Sources say the BJP will use the arrests as an example of the SP’s “partial attitude” but in a way to ensure that gains earned in the past few days are not negated. Shah was present at the meeting between Singh and Modi yesterday.
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Riots a blot on Akhilesh’s political career: Ramesh
Lucknow, September 21 Speaking to the media at the UPCC headquarters here today, Ramesh admitted that Akilesh was a good friend but after the Muzaffarnagar riots, he (Yadav) could not be taken seriously any longer. “The riots are a big blot on his political career”, he said. “The state government did not recognise the seriousness of the situation. No state representative visited Muzaffarnagar for days. It was only when Prime minister Manmohan Singh announced his visit along with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi that Akhilesh decided to visit Muzaffarnagar”, he said. Warning that Muzaffarnagar was more of a strategy than a riot, Ramesh said with the arrival of Amit Shah, BJP’s game plan to polarise votes in Uttar Pradesh on communal lines had become clear. “Looking at the way the RSS has been calling the shots in the last few months, the BJP appears to be only a frontal organisation. The next General Election will actually be a direct contest between the Congress and RSS ideology.” he said. Ramesh pointed out that the Congress and the BJP were contenders for power in only half a dozen states while in most of the others, the Congress was fighting the ruling regional parties. Responding to a question he expressed anguish at the state of MNREGA in Uttar Pradesh and said at times he wished to stop MNREGA funds. “But I know this will only harm the people who are benefiting by it in many pockets” He said he had written five letters and met the CM thrice in the past 18 months regarding the underperformance of MNREGA in the state, but things were yet to improve.
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TDP chief for early resolution on Telangana
New Delhi, September 21 Blaming the Congress party for creating a situation in the state that is now in the grip of agitation for last several weeks, Naidu said the announcement of a separate Telangana was taken to gain political mileage and ground in Andhra Pradesh. He charged that the Congress was also working to dilute the case against Jagan Mohan Reddy. The TDP chief presented a memorandum to the President urging him to intervene and said the Prime Minister did not respond to his communication in this regard. The state is losing revenue and development had come to a standstill. Speaking to the media after a meeting with CPM leader Prakash Karat and Sitaram Yechury, the TDP chief said the Congress hopes to benefit in the Lok Sabha and state Assembly elections by aligning with the Telangana Rashtra Samiti in Telangana region while keeping YSR Congress Party of Jagan Mohan Reddy in coastal and Rayalseema region. On his part, Karat said the Centre should intervene and find a way out of the paralysis in Andhra Pradesh. The CPM has opposed the creation of smaller states while the CPI that once stood for Visalandhra endorsed the decision to carve out separate Telangana from Andhra Pradesh. The focus of the TDP chief’s visit to Delhi is to highlight the plight of the people, who have been caught between the continuous agitation and protests by either side - those favouring a separate Telangana and those opposed to any bifurcation of the State. Naidu also suggested that in the absence of any decision by the Centre, the Joint Action Committee of either side should sit together and resolve the impasse in the interest of the state. The decision to create separate Telangana has taken a toll on the TDP that is seen to have conceded ground to the YSR Congress in coastal and Rayalseema region while the TRS does not allow much space for other political parties in Telangana region.
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Naidu meets Rajnath
New Delhi, September 21 However, for BJP’s PM candidate Narendra Modi, attracting new allies to the NDA is important especially to prove the point that he is capable of forging friendships and alliances. Sources say that given Naidu’s current “weak” political situation, he may not bring much to the NDA table, but then in an election year “one plus one can account for 11”. Therefore if Naidu makes any friendly advances, they will not be thwarted. “The BJP does not have many choices in Andhra. In all probability, YSR Congress’ chief Jaganmohan Reddy may opt for the Congress,” a senior leader said. Telangana has hit the TDP hard and Naidu, who was responsible for thwarting the attempt to form Telengana during the NDA regime, is now being viewed as a “traitor” in the Seemandhra region. Apart from stiff competition from Jagan in Seemandhra and from the Congress, the TRS and others in Telangana, he is facing problems within the party. A problem that he will face if he joins the NDA is the differing stands of the BJP and the TDP on the Telangana issue. Sources say a pre-poll alliance between the two parties will only be possible if they respect each-other’s differing stands on the issue. Considering the BJP’s clear pro-Telangana stand, it is quite likely that the matter is pushed to a post-alliance scenario, sources say.
Tough task
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2 officials in Modi’s office quizzed
Manas Dasgupta
Ahmedabad, September 21 Sources close to the CMO said the Additional Secretary in the Chief Minister’s office, GC Murmu, and secretary AK Sharma were taken to some undisclosed location and quizzed for nearly four hours by CBI sleuths who are investigating some of the fake encounter cases in the state. According to sources, the main reason for questioning the two officials was the audio record clandestinely taken by one of the accused police officers, former deputy superintendent of police GL Singhal. After his arrest by the CBI in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case, Singhal resigned from police service and was granted bail by the court. The audio record was reportedly of a 2011 meeting of some senior officials of the CMO with some police officers and others about the Ishrat fake encounter case. Methods of handling the case to keep Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his former Minister of State for Home Amit Shah out of the CBI net were reportedly discussed. The two CMO officials prominently figured in the audio record and the CBI reportedly took voice samples of Murmu and Sharma to cross-check the authenticity of the audio record submitted by Singhal. The CBI had yesterday questioned Vanzara, who in his letter of resignation earlier this month had held the Modi government, and particularly Shah, responsible for the fake encounters. He claimed that these were executed by the police according to the “conscious policy” of the state government taken at the “highest level of hierarchy.” Singhal has already made an offer to the CBI to turn approver and the investigating agency in return paved the way for his seeking default bail by not submitting the charge-sheet within the stipulated period of 90 days from the date of his arrest.
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JPC meet on 2G now scheduled for Sept 27
New Delhi, September 21 The meeting, earlier scheduled for Monday, had been postponed on account of pre-occupation of some of the members “with other important engagements, including meeting of the National Integration Council (NIC)” which is also on the same date. Reports here said that JPC chief PC Chacko has now called the meeting for Friday. The meeting is expected to be stormy with the main Opposition party BJP and the Left parties ready to gun for Chacko for his attempts to get the draft report, which clears the names of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram, adopted on the day. The exchanges between the JPC chairman and the Opposition members at the meeting are expected to be sharper as Chacko last week purportedly circulated among the panel members a 106-page note written, four months ago, by prime accused and ex-Telecom Minister A Raja. With Chacko looking to press for the adoption of the draft report, which also he has circulated, the opposition members had questioned the timing of circulation of the note by Raja and were ready to show their dissent at the attempts to get the report adopted. Incidentally, erstwhile UPA ally DMK, the party which Raja represents, has also wrote to Chacko demanding examination of documents the DoT had filed before courts and the CAG while defending the spectrum allocation. In an apparent move to delay the adoption of the draft report, DMK member in the JPC T R Baalu has written to Chacko to immediately call for the records of the various affidavits filed by the DoT before courts defending the 2G radio wave allocation. Chacko is expected to face strong opposition as the BJP and Left members are all set to oppose the draft report by either giving strong notes of dissent or demanding a vote. The JPC has 20 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha. It has 12 members of the ruling UPA -- Congress (11) and NCP (1). Among its outside allies, SP has one member and BSP two. Opposition camp has BJP (6), BJD (1), TMC (1), CPI (1), CPI-M (1), DMK (1) and AIADMK (1). JD(U), which recently split with BJP, has two members and the party’s stand will be crucial. Besides, there is one nominated member from the Rajya Sabha.
To face strong opposition
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RBI Governor has ‘asphyxiated’ investor: Swamy
New Delhi, September 21 Swamy, a noted economist, alleged that the move shows Rajan's short-sightedness and foreign mentality and demanded his immediate removal. "His economics has been known to be the same as that caused the US Depression of the 1920s, namely, following a conservative fiscal policy. Just when investment and capital market needed an injection of adrenalin, Dr Rajan asphyxiated the investor. By mid-2014, the government will be on the verge of default of payments," Swamy said. He was speaking to reporters at his maiden press conference after merging his Janata Party with the BJP last month. Calling for a new reform policy, the BJP leader said India has forex reserves of only $227 billion and there is danger of reverse of short-term capital outflow by panic cashing of Participatory Notes, hawala operations and rigged short-selling of the rupee abroad. The BJP leader also referred to the falling rupee and said while it had dropped by only Rs 4 to a Dollar between 1999 to 2004 when NDA was in power, the slide has been of Rs 23.42 in the last nine years of UPA rule. Swamy also came up with an allegation that Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra and Finance Minister P Chidambaram's son Kartik were responsible for the depreciation of the rupee vis-a-vis the dollar. Without providing a proof to substantiate his accusations, the man, who has filed cases against many prominent personalities, said he had the evidence which he would present in the court at an appropriate time. All he said was that the rupee had been deliberately manipulated to suit certain bigwigs.
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Farmers demand better MSP for paddy
New Delhi, September 21 BKU leaders Ajmer Singh Lakhowal and Yudvir Singh demanded that the government declare Rs 2,00 a quintal as the MSP of paddy after adding 50 per cent premium in the cost of production. They also urged President Pranab Mukherjee to not sign the Land Acquisition Bill recently passed by the Parliament. “The government is saying that the new Bill will be helpful to farmers in getting good prices at the time of acquisition, which is absolutely false,” they said. Farmer’ leaders are demanding guaranteed income from agriculture to increase production and reduce the government expense on farmer welfare schemes. “To establish agriculture as a respectable and profitable business it is necessary to establish a national farmer income commission,” the BKU said.
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Another building collapse in Mumbra
Mumbai, September 21 Police said the five-storeyed building, Banu Complex, began shaking this morning. Nearly 100 people who were living in the structure rushed out. But three men and a woman who couldn’t come out in time are believed to be trapped in the debris. The building came down at 7.55 am. Police said they have arrested the builder Shakeel Shaikh while his father Aqeel is absconding. Residents told police that the structure began shaking at 4 am. Panic-stricken residents rushed out quickly, but two of the four who are trapped in the debris re-entered the building to check on their flats when the structure came down. This is the second building collapse in the area in the past three months.
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Tezpur (Assam) Motihari (bihar)
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