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poll code violations
UP debates Modi’s candidature
Andhra Pradesh in grip of political migrations
India set to challenge US for poll-spending record
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Nilekani formally joins Congress
Kashmiri students controversy
AAP not strong to beat BJP, Cong tells M’rashtra Muslims
Bachi Singh Rawat resigns from BJP posts in U’khand
M’rashtra to legalise pre-2000 slums
Indian Mujahideen focusing on Nepal to strike terror in India
Mishap at under-construction sub won’t hit project: MoD
Coal scam: CBI to file status report in SC today
HC: Refusal to sex on honeymoon not cruelty
CISF to have ‘intelligent’ CCTV cameras for security
Check on spying
Govt survey of learning outcomes challenges Pratham findings
Discounted airfares bring in new flyers
2 UP ministers sacked
Stone pelting hits AAP Bandipora road show
EC to hold polling camp for riot victims
Aamir complains against ‘defamatory’ campaign
Pawar’s chopper makes emergency landing
Noida-based techie found murdered; wife suspect
Kolkata’s Hogg Market to get facelift with pvt aid
Google may face up to $5 bn fine in India
SP Lok Sabha candidate’s car mows down child
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BJP complains to EC against Rahul
In a memorandum to Chief Election Commissioner VS Sampath, the BJP charged Rahul Gandhi and his party with being "habitual offenders" of the poll code and flaring up communal tension ahead of elections. "It is prayed that appropriate action may kindly be taken against the Indian National Congress as well as Rahul Gandhi, MP and vice-president, Indian National Congress, for violating the Model Code of Conduct. The recognition of the Indian National Congress as a national party may kindly be withdrawn immediately for repeated violations of the Model Code of Conduct," it said. BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the entire tone and tenor of Rahul Gandhi's speech was to incite the feelings of the people and create hatred towards the BJP as well as the RSS. He said his statement makes it clear the aim was to put across absolutely false and baseless notions in the minds of the people that the BJP creates confrontation and enmity between Hindus and Muslims as well as among other communities and regions. "The intention of Rahul Gandhi was to incite the feelings of the people by falsely portraying the RSS to be responsible for his (Mahatma Gandhi's) death and further create a sense of fear among the Hindus, Muslims and other communities that the BJP will create tensions between them," Naqvi said in the memorandum. He said the statements of Rahul Gandhi "are not only false, disgraceful, condemnable, baseless but also an utter violation of the Model Code of Conduct as well as established democratic practices". "It is an attempt to mislead the people of the country by character assassination of the BJP, RSS and its members, based on completely false and baseless allegations and propaganda," he said. The memorandum said the Congress has not disassociated itself from the statements made by its vice-president till date and on the contrary, Congress members had actively endorsed and defended his statements at all public platforms. It demanded that the recognition of the Congress as a national party may be withdrawn. Naqvi said the speech was not an isolated incident of model code violation as during the Assembly elections in five states in November-December last year, he had made certain similar statements and the EC had conveyed its displeasure to him and advised him to be more circumspect in his public utterances during election campaign in its order of November 13, 2013. "That the utterances of Rahul Gandhi have not been withdrawn by him till date and the false and misleading statements as well as inflammatory statements inciting feelings of hatred among the people are in clear violation of the Model Code of Conduct and, accordingly, Rahul Gandhi is liable to be proceeded against for the same," the memorandum stated. Charging the Congress and its leaders with flouting the code with "impunity" time and again in spite of warnings by the Commission, Naqvi said this was the sixth instance of violation of the model code by senior Congress leaders during the past six months, five of them coming from Rahul Gandhi. "Therefore, it is high time that strict action is initiated against Rahul Gandhi as well as the Congress for repeatedly violating the Model Code of Conduct and challenging as well as undermining the instructions, warning as well as the authority of the Election Commission," he said. He said, "It has become clear that with such statements, the Congress is trying to make this election into a communal frenzy to incite communal feelings and passions... "Rahul Gandhi is a habitual offender and the Congress is a history-sheeter party of giving communal colour to elections. It is doing so to hide its own failures on the fronts of corruption, scams, price rise, national security and crime and thus divert public attention," he said. (With PTI inputs) Seeks de-recognition of Congress
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UP debates Modi’s candidature
Speculation is rife about Varanasi, Allahabad (which has given many a prime minister to the country in the past) and Lucknow (former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpaaye’s constituency). After initial antagonism, sitting Varanasi MP
Murli Manohar Joshi has reluctantly made up his mind to accept the verdict of the March 13 BJP
parliamentary board meeting as regards party’s official candidate from the constituency. Joshi denied there had been any “poster war” in the constituency. He said such reports were just a figment of the media’s imagination. Contrary to his statement, the BJP workers in Varanasi took to the streets even today. Some banners read: “Kashi ki janata rahi pukaar, Narendra Modi ho saansad hamaar” (People of Kashi are giving a call, Narendra Modi should be our parliamentarian). Some posters put up in the streets read: “Joshi nahi Modi chahiye” (We want Modi, not Joshi). However, BJP supporters in Allahabad want Modi to contest from their city. A group of supporters standing in waist-deep waters at the Sangam chanted mantras, praying for Modi to be declared the party candidate from Allahabad. Speculation on 3 seats Speculation is rife about Varanasi, Allahabad (which has given many a PM to the country in the past) and Lucknow (former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s
constituency).
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Andhra Pradesh in grip of political migrations
Hyderabad, March 9 The ruling Congress is facing the brunt with several of its leaders from Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions, jointly referred to as Seemandhra, leaving the party in search of greener pastures ahead of the elections. This is because of public anger in Seemandhra over the UPA government's decision to divide the state. Former Union Minister D Purandeswari was the high-profile migrant from the Congress. She joined the BJP in the presence of party president Rajnath Singh and is likely to contest the Lok Sabha elections from either Visakhapatnam or Vijayawada. Daughter of the Telugu matinee idol and former Chief Minister late N T Rama Rao, she was inducted into the Manmohan Singh Cabinet in 2006. She quit the cabinet and the Congress recently to protest against the bifurcation of the state. In a further setback to the Congress, two former ministers in the Kiran Kumar Reddy Cabinet, TG Venkatesh and E Pratap Reddy, joined the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) today. Both of them belong to Kurnool district in Rayalaseema region. They joined the TDP in the presence of party chief N Chandrababu Naidu in Hyderabad. Earlier, former Minister Galla Aruna Kumari, her industrialist son Galla Jaidev, Congress MLAs Adala Prabhakar Reddy, Sridhar Krishna Reddy, B Satyananda Rao had quit the ruling party and joined the TDP. The YSR Congress Party, headed by Kadapa MP YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, has also emerged as a favoured destination for political migratory birds from the Congress. According to Congress sources, at least 30 legislators are set to switch their loyalty as they fear that the Congress would face total rout in Seemandhra region as a fallout of its decision to divide the state. The elected representatives in the region are coming under increasing public pressure to quit their posts. Switching loyalties
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India set to challenge US for poll-spending record
India's campaign spend, which can include cash stuffed in envelopes as well as multi-million-dollar ad campaigns, has been estimated at 300 billion rupees by the Centre for Media Studies, which tracks spending. That is triple the expenditure the centre said was spent on electioneering in the last national poll in 2009 - partly a reflection of a high-octane campaign by pro-business opposition candidate for prime minister, Narendra
Modi, who started nationwide rallies and advertising last year. "They started much before, and they are also focusing on states where they are traditionally not strong. They are leaving no area untouched," said N Bhaskara
Rao, chairman of the Centre for Media Studies. The campaign spending for this election could give a boost to the economy, which has been heading for its longest slump since the 1980s. Economists have forecast a second year of growth below 5 percent in the financial year ending this month. Candidate and party funding in India is opaque and the source of much of the spending is hard to ascertain, but the Centre for Media Studies and other transparency advocates say the main contenders have built up large war chests. "This election spending largesse will help to boost Indian consumption expenditure over the second quarter of 2014, but this will be a temporary spike," said Rajiv
Biswas, the Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Global Insight. India's projected campaign spending is only rivalled by the $7 billion spent by candidates, parties and support groups in the 2012 U.S. presidential race, the world's most expensive, according to data provided by the US election commission. Spending on previous Indian elections have benefited a wide range of businesses, from media groups and advertisers that rake in campaign-ad revenues to consumer-based firms that capitalise indirectly on the overall jump in spending, such as motor-bike manufacturers and brewers like United Spirits
(UNSP.NS). India's advertising industry expects to see an $800 million injection during the election season, according to an outlook by the country's largest local agency, Madison Media. That should benefit media firms, such as DB Corp
(DBCL.NS), which owns the high-circulation Hindi language daily Dainik
Bhaskar. Cash hidden in newspapers
Much of India's campaign spend will remain in its thriving black economy. Rules allow candidates to spend 7 million rupees on campaigns for a parliament seat but the real cost of winning is about 10 times that, thanks to spending on rallies, fuel and media campaigns that often include payments for coverage. Indian politicians regularly bribe voters with cash payouts or alcohol to secure their support. Recent state elections have seen innovations such as getting money to voters via mobile phone credit and envelopes of cash delivered in morning papers. In the last three years, election authorities seized from politicians a total of about $32.65 million in the form of concealed cash, some if it stashed in helicopters, milk trucks and even funeral vans, a former election commissioner said. The dates for the month-long election starting on April 7 were announced last week, with polls staggered in nine stages to help security forces prevent polling booth fraud. Despite evidence of vote-buying, India's elections are now largely seen as free and fair on polling day. However, Chief Election Commissioner VS Sampath said he was worried about "money power" - heavy spending and the use of illegal funds to influence the outcome. The Centre for Media Studies' spending projections are based on analyzes of rising costs in local and state elections in the past five years. It also surveys voters on prevalence of bribes.
Modi fund raising
Narendra Modi's BJP got off to an early start in campaigning, pushing into the south where the BJP is weak and has avoided spending money in the past. Modi's
BJP-led coalition has a strong lead over the ruling Congress party in opinion polls, but it is unlikely to win an outright majority. Some of Modi's fundraising is led by a seven-member team, including Deepak
Kanth, a former investment banker previously with Citibank in London. This team has organized an online fund-raising drive in India and is also targeting donations from wealthy Indians living in Hong Kong and Singapore. This team has only raised $4 million, a party source said, but shows how far Modi is casting his net for campaign funds.
— Reuters $5 billion bill
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Nilekani formally joins Congress
KPCC president G Parameshwar admitted the 58-year-old Nilekani into the Congress in the presence of hundreds of party cadres and leaders, amidst bursting of crackers and beating of drums at the party office here. Dressed in casuals and sporting the Mysore turban, a beaming Nilekani thanked Parameshwar for admitting him in the Congress and giving him the opportunity to contest in the Lok Sabha elections from his home constituency. Nilekani will be challenging BJP candidate and five-time winner H N Ananth Kumar, who has been representing the constituency since 1996. “I deem it a privilege and honour to serve the people through the Congress. I am also humbled by the party’s decision to field me from the Bangalore South constituency in the General Election”, Nilekani told reporters later. Nilekani’s celebrity wife Rohini or his family members were conspicuously absent on the occasion. The noted entrepreneur and philanthropist’s entry into the party, however, was marked by chaos and unruly scenes as scores of party workers and supporters of local leaders gate-crashed into the party office hall and mobbed him on the dais.
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EC seeks report from Meerut DM, SSP
Tribune News Service
Lucknow, March 9 BJP state president Laxmikant Bajpai, who is the sitting MLA from Meerut, had asked state Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha to intervene in the matter. In a letter to Sinha yesterday, Bajpai had alleged that the withdrawal of cases of sedition against the 67 Kashmiri students of Subharti University had been done on the recommendation of the Samajwadi Party government to draw political mileage ahead of the Lok Sabha election. Responding to Bajpai’s letter, Sinha has sought a detailed report in the matter from Meerut DM Pankaj Yadav and SSP Onkar Singh. After receiving the report, the EC would decide if the model code of conduct has been violated by withdrawing the cases against Kashmiri students. On March 2, there was a clash among students at varsity’s Madan Lal Dhingra hostel after some Kashmiri students allegedly indulged in unruly behaviour and raised pro- Pakistan slogans during a cricket match. Vice-Chacellor Manzoor Ahmad has suspended the students and instituted a probe. The police reportedly added charges of sedition against the students which were later withdrawn after J&K CM Omar Abdullah requested Akhilesh Yadav to do so. Six students of Greater Noida’s Sharda University have also been expelled from the hostel for reportedly cheering for Pakistan during the same match. Of these, four are from Kashmir and two from neighbouring Aligarh. The reason for expulsion has not been made clear by the varsity. BJP’s complaint
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AAP not strong to beat BJP, Cong tells M’rashtra Muslims
Mumbai, March 9 At one such meeting in Mumbai recently, noted activist Shabnam Hashmi told leaders of the Muslim community that the Aam Aadmi Party did not have the might to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party. "Every vote for the Aam Aadmi Party would help the BJP," Hashmi said. The activist also hit out at members of the Muslim community in Gujarat and other places who were engaging with Gujarat CM and the BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. "We cannot forgive and forget the Gujarat riots," Hashmi said. Others who spoke on the occasion like Congress leader and former MLA Yusuf Abrahani said the Muslim community should vote for those who have the potential to defeat BJP candidates. Congress leaders want to paint their candidates as the only ones who are strong enough to defeat the BJP's representatives in Maharashtra. Muslims account for around 12 per cent of the population in Maharashtra and their vote can affect the fortunes of political parties in at least 18-20 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state. The community accounts for 20 per cent of the population in Mumbai's metropolitan region. "The BJP's portrayal of Narendra Modi is a cause for concern among Muslims across India. Members of the community will vote for the strongest candidate who can defeat the BJP," Farid Khan, who runs an organisation called Mili Shoora, said. He felt that even members of the community who agree with the message of AAP would end up voting for the Congress and
other stronger parties across the country. Number game
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Bachi Singh Rawat resigns from BJP posts in U’khand
He resigned from both these posts. He, however, did not either resign from the primary membership of the party nor from the post of state convener for the unity campaign.He was keen on seeking the BJP ticket from the Nainital constituency. But after knowing that his name was not even included in the panel sent to the party high command for seat, he today decided to resign. Feeling sidelined
Former Almora MP (in pic) was keen on seeking the BJP ticket from the Nainital constituency, but his name was
not even included in the panel sent to the party high command for the seat
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M’rashtra to legalise pre-2000 slums
Mumbai, March 9 Before this decision, only slums built till 1995 were eligible for regularisation. The ruling Congress-NCP alliance had promised to regularise slums till 2000 shortly before the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. This was, however, not implemented because of restrictions imposed by courts. "We have got the clearance from the advocate general to introduce a bill in the legislative assembly," Chavan said. The legislative route taken by the government is expected to surmount any legal hurdles. Sources said the decision would benefit nearly 4 lakh slum dwellers across the state. The decision has drawn flak from the Opposition parties. Medha Patkar, social activist and candidate of the Aam Aadmi Party, called it an election gimmick. "The Congress-NCP fought three elections by making this promise but failed to do this till now," Patkar told reporters. “The Rajiv Aavas Yojana (RAY) promises property rights to those living in slums constructed till the year 2009. This scheme has not been implemented properly by the Maharashtra government,” Patkar said. The activist also blamed the government for not making efforts to acquire 30,000 acres of land held by private and government institutions for resettling slum dwellers. Free drugs in govt hospitals
The Maharashtra Government has rolled out distribution of essential drugs free of charge in government hospitals. In all, 429 essential drugs including those for treatment of cancer and heart ailments will be available free of charge in government hospitals for everyone regardless of their income. Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said these drugs are listed as essential by
the World Health Organisation and the Ministry of Health.
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Indian Mujahideen focusing on Nepal to strike terror in India
New Delhi, March 9 These activities include contacting the Maoists for the procurement of weapons, finding new terrorist operatives, making plans to establish hideouts in Nepal and Tibet and looking at private firms that provide training for recruitment into the British Army and the Singapore Police. The developments were revealed in the NIA supplementary chargesheet filed against the terror group at a NIA Special Court in Delhi on February 20. On February 24, the court had taken cognisance of the chargesheet filed in a case against the IM that was registered on September 2012. In the chargesheet, Ahmed Siddibappa alias Yasin Bhatkal, who is one of the founders of the IM, and three others -- Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi, Manzer Imam alias Jameel and Ujjair Ahmed -- have been charged with carrying out terrorist activities against India. The NIA investigation has revealed that Yasin had allegedly made attempts to contact the Maoists in Nepal to seek their assistance, states the chargesheet. The NIA had seized a “chat” conversation between Yasin and Riyaz Bhatkal, another founder of the IM. According to the chat, “Riyaz had asked Yasin to establish contact with the Maoists there (Nepal) as the Maoists could be of great help in procuring arms and ammunition for their organisation. Riyaz remarked that the Chinese supported the Maoists.” In another chat dated June 25, 2013, Yasin told Riyaz that he had met a senior Maoist leader, but did not find him useful. “Though he was Muslim, he was very haughty. He was claiming very high rates for the supply of weapons. Yasin mentioned that he did not talk about explosives, but they (Maoists) did have explosives which could be filled in tubes,” according to the chat. The chargesheet further reveals that Yasin and Asadullah had allegedly contacted persons in Nepal for allegedly raising a new module there to commit terrorist activities in India. In a chat with Riyaz, Yasin had informed him of a local man in Nepal who was “worthy” of being inducted into terrorist activities. “This person was in Qatar. Earlier, he was in Dubai and had lived with the Taliban. He is aged about 30, was a neo-convert who got converted about nine years back in Sharjah and was highly radicalised,” says the chargesheet. To further their terrorist activities, Yasin in a chat had allegedly suggested the training of IM cadres in Nepal to Riyaz. “Yasin told Riyaz about exploring some private firms like Gorkha Task Force, which gives military training for recruitment into the British Army and the Singapore Police. This was similar to what they impart in Pakistan,” according to the chargesheet. A conspiracy was also allegedly hatched by Yasin and Riyaz to abduct Jews at Pokhara, Nepal, as a bargaining chip to free Dr Aafia Siddique, who has been imprisoned by the US. In 2003, the FBI wanted Siddique for her alleged links with the Al-Qaida. She was later arrested in Ghazni, Afghanistan. Their activities
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Mishap at under-construction sub won’t hit project: MoD
New Delhi, March 9 The MoD plans to build four nuclear-powered submarines. While the Arihant is getting ready for final sea trials, other vessels are in various stages of development. Today’s statement by the MoD was aimed at controlling any adverse impact the accident would have had on India’s international image and its aim of dominating the Indian Ocean. “The accident is in no way related with any nuclear-related activity. The submarines are safe and the accident does not adversely affect the project activities or the activities of Indian Navy or Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)”, MoD spokesperson Sitanshu Kar said. The accident took place yesterday around 5 pm, when Larsen and Toubro, an industrial partner
of the DRDO, was undertaking preparatory activities for hydro-pressure testing of a tank at the Ship Building Centre,
Visakhapatnam. One L&T employee was killed and two others were injured. No defence personnel were involved in the accident. First reports had filtered out by midnight. Sources said the accident occurred at the ship-building yard but it was nowhere near the submarines and will not hamper the progress in anyway. “The work on the pressure system has been suspended till the cause is established and mitigating measures are put in place. An inquiry has been ordered”, the MoD said. China has a strong fleet comprising 55 nuclear-powered submarines. The INS Arihant and its other vessels will provide the Navy a ‘second strike capability’. These will carry nuclear-tipped missiles that can be fired while the vessel is submerged. In naval terminology, a nuclear-powered submarine capable of launching a nuclear missile, is classified as ship submersible ballistic nuclear (SSBN). Each of the vessels will cost Rs 15,000 crore. The project is been jointly undertaken by the Indian Navy, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and the DRDO at the dockyard in Visakhapatnam. Besides the Russian expertise, other companies involved in the development of the submarine are Tata Power, a division of Tata Group, and Larsen & Toubro, a technology, engineering, construction and manufacturing company.
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Coal scam: CBI to file status report in SC today
New Delhi, March 9 Sources in the investigating agency said a chargesheet was likely to be filed tomorrow before a designated court and the Supreme Court would be apprised about it. The Supreme Court had asked the CBI, during the last hearing on February 11, to submit a status report about filing of chargesheet in six of the cases finalised by the agency. The CBI has filed over 16 FIRs which included those against AMR Iron and Steel, JLD Yavatmal Energy, Vini Iron and Steel Udyog, JAS Infrastructure Capital Pvt Ltd, Grace Industries, Jindal Steel and Power, Rathi Steel and Power Ltd, Jharkhand Ispat, Green Infrastructure, Kamal Sponge, Pushp Steel, Hindalco, BLA Industries, Castron Technologies and Castron Mining and Nav Bharat Power Private Limited. These FIRs were registered after the agency probed three preliminary enquiries related to coal block allocation between 2006 and 2009, 1993 and 2004 and projects given under a government scheme. The CBI may also inform the apex court about the permission sought from nine states which were reluctant in allowing the agency to conduct probe in their jurisdiction. The CBI had been directed to file chargesheet in all the cases finalised by it by first week of March but the agency had moved a petition on March four seeking more time to file the charge sheet in the cases. "The CBI is strenuously making efforts to meet the deadline fixed by the court. Inquiry or investigation in all three PEs and arising out of 14 cases are being attended to simultaneously. In the process, reaching a logical conclusion is taking its due time," the agency had said. "For these reasons, forming an opinion in terms of Section 173(2) of Criminal Procedure Code (filing of charge sheet) on the basis of scrutiny of evidence collected in six completed RCs and preparation of final report would take some more time for submission before the appropriate trial court," CBI had said in its plea before the apex court. — PTI 16 FIRs against firms
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HC: Refusal to sex on honeymoon not cruelty
Mumbai, March 9 The court also ruled that a wife donning shirts and pants to office occasionally and going out of town for office work soon after marriage also would not amount to cruelty towards her husband. "The married life should be assessed as a whole and a few isolated instances over certain period will not amount to cruelty", observed Justices VK Tahilramani and P N Deshmukh in an order early this week. The ill-conduct must be preceded for a fairly lengthy period where the relationship has deteriorated to an extent that because of the acts and behaviour of a spouse, one party finds it extremely difficult to live any longer with the other party (which) may amount to mental cruelty", the Bench said. Mere trivial irritations, quarrels, normal wear and tear of married life which happens in day to day life in all families would not be adequate for grant of divorce on the ground of cruelty, the judges further said. "Only sustained unjustified and reprehensible conduct affecting physical and mental health of the other spouse may lead to mental cruelty. There is no evidence to that effect in the present case", the Bench noted. The court was hearing an appeal filed by a 29-year-old wife who was aggrieved by a family court order of December 2012, passing a divorce decree on a plea made by her husband on the grounds of cruelty. — PTI
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Attari arms seizure: Key recipient used new conduits for delivery every time
Amritsar, March 9 Custom sleuths had confiscated 11 pistols and 22 empty magazines hidden in a special cavity at the base of juicer and meat-mincing machines seized from the suspects — Shehnaz Begum, Razia Begum, Riaz Ahmad, Anees Ahmad, Naseer and Arif. Intelligence agencies, including an anti-terrorist squad, from Uttar Pradesh that landed at Amritsar on Saturday repeatedly questioned them about the purpose of the arms smuggled from Pakistan. The interrogation has also revealed that the suspects were not the riot victims and had never lived in the relief camps. Top intelligence agencies have been on a high alert after the reports that Pakistan’s ISI was trying to recruit Muzaffarnagar riot victims taking shelter in the relief camps. Sources said the six UP residents were used as courier by Kala, who also hailed from Muzaffarnagar. He was to take the delivery of the arms’ consignment in Delhi. Rashid had earlier sent embroidery material to Hameeda Begum in Lahore through them and while returning Hameeda handed over the arms to them for supplying it to Rashid. They added till now around 80 machines were sent from Pakistan. Deputy Commissioner Customs at the Attari Railway Station, Gurdev Singh said they did not know whether the machines were carrying arms earlier. “This time the suspicion arouse after the machines were passed through a scanner and subsequently recovery was made,” he said, adding that this was the first instance when arms were recovered from meat-mincing machines. The anti-terrorist squad today returned to UP and while the six suspects were handed back to the Government Railway Police which have registered a case under the Arms Act and unlawful activity against them. The GRP would produce them in the court tomorrow.
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CISF to have ‘intelligent’ CCTV cameras for security
The technology is part of the integrated security solutions that aims at “marrying manpower with technology”. These developments were shared by CISF Director General Arvind Ranjan on the sidelines of the force’s annual press conference held here yesterday. He explained that with integrated security solutions, a CCTV camera is able to identify an unwanted activity. “There are 4,000 cameras installed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. And humans monitor these cameras. If an incident takes place when nobody is not watching the cameras, no one will know what happened. So there is a need to have an integrated security solution. This means that the camera should be able to detect any untoward activity. It will sound an alarm and then you can monitor that particular activity and send people to verify it,” said Ranjan. Other senior CISF officers explained that the new system could be called artificial intelligence -- meaning machines and software with intelligence. “We want to have intelligent cameras where we will feed a certain programme that will have parameters. When anything goes above or below these parameters, the camera will focus on that area,” they said. The DG explained that in integrated security solutions, one could feed data of any undesirable activity that the system could identify. For example, if the system has been programmed to identify unattended bags, the CCTV cameras that are part of this system would focus on such bags and an alarm would be sounded. Ranjan said, “Integrated security solutions will be implemented at all the installations that are being guarded by the CISF.” The CISF is responsible for the security of nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, Delhi Metro, power plants, oil refineries and private sector installations. He added that the new system would be first set up at installations of the Department of Atomic Energy, space establishments and airports. The CISF presently guards 59 airports and will soon guard 30 more airports. The DG said that in integrated security solutions, there was a need to have the proper equipment; the equipment should be operationally reliable; and the company should give an assurance that during the life cycle of the equipment, spare parts would be given and the defects would be rectified by the company itself. “There are many airports where CCTV cameras have been installed, but some of the cameras are not working. When we report (to the company that provides the cameras), they say we will inform the supplier and tenders for repairs will be floated. This will take about six months. But during this period, the airports are vulnerable,” he said. He said that therefore, it was important to purchase reliable equipment and only then it could be integrated into the security apparatus. For strict vigil
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Keep record of ISD calls, operators told
Jaipur, March 9 District Collector Bhanu Prakash Yeturu has also extended the ban on use of Pakistani SIM in Barmer in view of national security. "These orders have been issued with a view to keeping a check on spying activities in Barmer district," Yeturu told PTI today. Any violation of the directives will invite legal action, the District Collector said. The use of Pakistani SIM is banned in the district and an order in this regard is renewed after two months, he said. The telephone operators near the border area have been asked to maintain a record of international calls made from their booths, the DC said. — PTI
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Govt survey of learning outcomes challenges Pratham findings
This is in contrast to the much cited surveys of NGO Pratham that repeatedly said that Indian rural students performed poorly in language and mathematics. Released this January, Pratham’s latest report said that less than half of class V rural students in the country were able to read a book meant for class II students and just around 40 per cent of class III students could read a simple paragraph. As regards mathematics, Pratham said only 25 per cent of class V rural students could do a three-digit division while less than 25 per cent of class III students could do simple subtraction. The National Achievement Survey conducted by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), however, trashes Pratham findings. The survey that covered 1.04 lakh students in 298 districts across 34 states found that 64 per cent of class III students could answer all language items correctly with most faring very well for specific language-related queries. A whopping 86 per cent correctly identified words; 65 per cent could listen to the passage with understanding and 59 per cent could read the passage and interpret its meaning. The national average score of class III students for language is 257 on a scale of 0 to 500 and 14 states, including Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat, scored above this average as against 15 states, including Haryana, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir, which scored below. For mathematics, the national average score is 252 on a scale of 0 to 500 with 14 states faring above the threshold and 12 below. Here also Punjab, Himachal and Gujarat are among top rankers while Haryana, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir lag behind. Daman and Diu, Puducherry, Tripura, Mizoram and Tamil Nadu are among the top five performers in both language and math among 34 states. The survey is interesting as it even looked at children’s ability to handle data and money. Around 77 and 78 per cent, respectively, could handle data and money problems, with the highest percentage being for Puducherry. More than two-thirds of students could solve subtraction (65 per cent), 66 per cent could do geometry, shape and addition problems. Students scored low on divisions with 57 per cent managing solutions; 59 per cent were able to do place value sums. “These scores are still much better than Pratham findings. The question is-our systems of assessment are more scientific. Then why is there such a difference between our and Pratham scores?” asked an HRD Ministry source. The survey
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Discounted airfares bring in new flyers
"Such offers add to the abysmally small flyer base in the country. The lower the fares, wider is the flyer-base. When a person flies for the first time and observes the huge time-saving thereof, it often becomes difficult for him/her to take a long journey by train," Amber Dubey, partner and head, aerospace and defence, KPMG, told IANS. "Families use these discounted tickets to shift from trains to flights and get more bang out of their three-four day vacation. Airlines get incremental traffic, better seat factors and advance cash. A typical win-win for all," Dubey added. Since the start of the year, the Indian aviation sector has seen three promotional schemes offering 30-50 percent discount on fares. "The recent discounts are to fill the 10 percent seats by giving an alternative to the AC1/2 train passenger," Rajiv Chib, associate director, aerospace and defence at PricewaterhouseCoopers, told IANS. "No airlines can afford discounts unless they have a strategy in mind. Discount is based on the premise that all airlines, even in peak season, have approximately 10 percent of vacant seats. At times like now with the exam season, it is much more." The new promotional scheme comes after the low cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJet launched two previous discount schemes that led to other airlines also offer the promotional fares. "These advance purchase offers are a win-win for customers, for airlines, and for the travel industry and the economy overall, as it leads to significant demand stimulation, customers get to enjoy deeply discounted fares, airlines get to reduce wastage of seats," said airline's new chief operating officer Sanjiv Kapoor. Other carriers have followed suit and tried to face the competition head on. "In a highly competitive market with little differentiation between airlines, a discount by one has to be matched by all others. There's no option. Though it comes as a rude surprise to other carriers, they do plan for such scenarios in advance," said Dubey. Passengers, travel agents and online booking websites have been quick to grab the new schemes. "These flash sales are becoming a regular feature. Besides stimulating demand, these are also prompting Indians to plan their travel in advance," said Vikram Malhi, general manager, south and southeast Asia, Expedia.
— IANS
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2 UP ministers sacked
Lucknow, March 9 While Singh was a cabinet minister with Agriculture portfolio, Paras was a minister of state with stamp and civil defence departments. Though no reason has been cited by the government for sacking of these ministers, party sources said SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav was unhappy with Singh's son Kirtivardhan joining the BJP. At a press conference in Gonda yesterday, Kirtivardhan attacked Mulayam, accusing him of propagating dynastic politics. He had even alleged that he had to pay a "bribe" of Rs 5,000 to meet Mulayam while he was the Chief Minister though he was a party MP, a charge denied by the Samajwadi Party. "In 2004, while Yadav was the CM, I had to give a Rs 5,000 packet to his personal secretary to meet him in the capacity of an MP,” Singh, who resigned from the SP and joined the BJP recently, told reporters. Sources said Paras was also involved in anti-party activities and that Mulayam had received complaints against him. With their sacking, the leadership intends to send a strong message to party men ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Mulayam had on Wednesday said the state government was "weakening" the party and had ticked off his son and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav asking him to keep distance from "sycophants". "I have not reviewed the performance of ministers but I know what they are doing," Mulayam had said pulling up Akhilesh government.
— PTI
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Stone pelting hits AAP Bandipora road show
Srinagar, March 9 Eyewitnesses said due to the stone pelting, four AAP workers were injured and a vehicle was damaged. People chased away AAP supporters. Later, the party workers led by Raja reached the police station at Bandipora where they lodged a complaint.
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EC to hold polling camp for riot victims
Lucknow, March 9 "A special camp will be organised for those living in relief camps in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining areas," Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha told reporters here. He said that all of them would be registered and issued temporary voter identity cards, suspending their existing ones, if any, so that they could exercise their franchise. At present, over 12,000 persons are living in such camps. Meanwhile, Sinha said that over 20 lakh persons participated in "Matdata chaupal."
PTI
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Aamir complains against ‘defamatory’ campaign
Aamir made his TV debut with "Sataymev Jayate" (SMJ) in May 2012 and the show, dealing with sensitive social issues like female feticide, domestic violence and child abuse, received a warm welcome from the TV viewers after it went on air on Star Plus. Some of the episodes dealing with female feticide and malpractices in medical field recorded the highest ratings. He launched the second season March 2 on STAR India channels with a sensitive issue of rape, and the second episode, beamed Sunday, talked about police force. It has been alleged in the messages on social networking site that when at the end of the show, Aamir asks for donations for Humanity Trust, the money is used for masjid construction assistance and placement assistance for Muslim youth. Aamir took to his Facebook page and clarified that he is associated with Humanity Trust, Hanspukur, West Bengal, not the other Humanity Trust. — IANS
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Pawar’s chopper makes emergency landing
Mumbai, March 9 "Pawar was going from Osmanabad in the helicopter to Parbhani for a political meeting. But his chopper had to make an emergency landing on SRT Medical College ground at Ambejogai in Beed district due to bad weather," a police official said.
— PTI |
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Noida-based techie found murdered; wife suspect
Ghaziabad, March 9 His wife Vaishali had March 7 gone to her parental house in Hyderabad with daughter Laxmi, 8. Upon her return Sunday, she found her husband lying dead on the bed. She phoned the police who found the deceased had sustained blunt fracture on his head. The wound is two days old which suggests he was hurt the day his kin left for Hyderabad. "We have registered a case and are investigating. Prima facie, she seems involved. During questioning, she said her husband used to torture her over small issues. But she has not made any confession. We are collecting evidence to prove her role," said police incharge Ran Vijay Singh. — PTI Vital clues The police have found that the deceased had sustained fracture on his head. The wound is two days old which suggests he was hurt the day his realtives left for Hyderabad n During questioning, the wife of the deacesed said her husband used to torture her over small issues. But she has not made any confession.
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Kolkata’s Hogg Market to get facelift with pvt aid
Kolkata, March 9 State municipal minister Ferhad Hakim said the state government was forced to invite private investment for city’s beautification and related development works after the Centre refused to sanction necessary funds for development projects. “We are committed to renovating the historic city and have prepared several schemes accordingly,” he said. The state government has initially sanctioned Rs 500 crore for the beautification and renovation of the Hogg Market as well as other markets, parks, pavements and roads in the city and the surrounding areas. Hakim said the Kolkata Mayor and other municipal boards had been asked to undertake development projects under the PPP model with the private investment. They had also been asked to take special care in preserving heritage structures in their respective areas. Second London This is part of the state government’s initiative to transform the Job Charnock’s city into “Second London”.
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Google may face up to $5 bn fine in India
New Delhi, March 9 Google said it is “extending full cooperation” to the CCI in its investigation. The conclusion of a two-year review by the US anti-trust watchdog has concluded that the company's services were good for competition, it added. The case has been before the Competition Commission of India (CCI) as well for over two years now and it relates to allegations that Google is abusing its dominant position in the internet search engine space. Under competition regulations, an entity found violating the norms could be slapped with penalty of up to 10% of its three-year annual average turnover. In the case of Google, its annual revenues in the last three years amounts to a staggering $49.3 billion and the maximum penalty can be up to nearly $5 billion. — PTI
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SP Lok Sabha candidate’s car mows down child Faizabad, March 9 "A case has been lodged in this regard. The vehicle that hit the boy was related to SP candidate Mitra Sen Yadav. We taking further action," Faizabad SP RA Gautam said. Sumit was playing outside his house when the speeding SUV hit him, Nishad said in his complaint. Yadav, a sitting MLA from Bikapur, was sitting on the back seat of the vehicle, alleged eye-witnesses and the boy's father. — PTI
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