|
|
|
|
|
Four-Year Undergraduate Programme
rollback
special to The Tribune |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Beijing
Diary
ISRO to put 5 foreign satellites in orbit today
DRDO develops armoured vehicles for troops
Eyes on defence deals, Western powers rush to court Modi
India writes to Swiss on secret accounts
Corruption in health
sector
Help us build healthy India, Modi tells US-based Indian doctors
271 crorepatis, but UP MLAs still
want salary hike ‘to tackle inflation’
Budget session
India, Pak to resume trade talks next month
Gogoi wants
Brahmaputra board rejigged
Lankan Navy arrests 17 TN fishermen
Cong demands SIT probe into MP exam scam
VVIP chopper deal: ED begins probe
|
|
Four-Year
Undergraduate Programme rollback Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service
New Delhi, June 29 The UGC today clarified that FYUP withdrawal won’t affect students who opted for BTech (four year) course last year and that the relaxation would be applicable only to FYUP’s BTech batch already studying the course. No fresh admissions to BTech courses under FYUP would henceforth be offered, it added. Under FYUP, DU’s Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh had last year converted the nomenclature of several BSc courses into BTech and promised students greater employability through these. Some of the streams in which DU offered BTech degrees under FYUP last year were computer science, electronics, food technology, instrumentation electronics and polymer science. With the scrapping of FYUP, uncertainly shrouds the fate of these BTech courses, especially with the UGC saying only last year’s students of the course would be allowed to complete it under the four-year format, while new admissions to the above stated streams would happen in the erstwhile BSc courses. While the UGC through a fresh directive today told DU’s 64 colleges to seek its approval and that of the All-India Council for Technical Education to continue offering BTech four-year course to the students of FYUP’s 2013-14 batch, the students are not satisfied. “What use would be our BTech degrees if we are the only batch that passes out with it? What marked value would our degree hold? We want admissions to continue to all courses DU converted from BSc three years to BTech four years last year. We will not settle for anything less. HRD Minister Smriti Irani must hear us,” a student said. Students of BTech course under FYUP protested today outside Irani’s residence saying politics and ego battles had harmed their interest. They said they were being put to a disadvantage for no fault of theirs. UGC vice-chairman H Devraj said the commission’s standing committee had in its June 23 meeting clarified that BTech students already admitted under FYUP won’t be touched. The UGC’s Standing Committee constituted to ensure smooth transition from FYUP back to three-year courses will meet tomorrow again to discuss the raging issues. Degrees of no use,
say students
|
||
|
ISIS militants’ extremism threatens world peace
Shyam Bhatia
New Delhi, June 29 ISIS commanders managed to capture Mosul without firing a shot before raiding the premises of the major government bank and helping themselves to the equivalent of $400 million and gold bullion lying in the vaults. This will allow them to repay their backers with interest and still have leftover to fund the next phase of their campaign to create a new state incorporating Syria, Iraq and probably Lebanon. This new state, if it ever comes into being, will be a monster that tolerates only Sunni Islam, even more extreme than the Wahabi variety practised in Saudi Arabia, while treating with contempt all other religions, including Shia Muslims, not to mention Christians, Hindus, Buddhists and others. The sheer intolerance of orthodox ISIS leaders operating in Syria and Iraq has been evident for weeks. They are responsible for gruesome crucifixions and beheadings, including the beheading of a Catholic priest in Syria that has been confirmed by the Vatican. The Human Rights Watch has warned that ISIS could face charges of committing crimes against humanity. It has managed to pinpoint areas in Iraq where ISIS has dug trenches to bury the bodies of its victims. Details are now also starting to emerge about just who makes up the ranks of ISIS. A few are indeed ex-members of Saddam Hussain’s Ba’ath Party, but most are a mixture of the Iraqi Al-Qaida and US-supported members of the Syrian opposition. They are the ones who made up the mini army that crossed into Iraq from Syria, driving at break neck speed in their newly purchased four-wheel drives. Their mysterious leader, Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi, is described as a former Iraqi army officer of the 3rd or 4th rank who spent some years at a US detention facility in Iraq, Camp Bucca where he was subjected to extremely harsh treatment, including water logging, that the US army and CIA have developed at their interrogation centres all over the world. Portrayed by US counter-terrorism officials as “ruthless, ambitious and opportunistic”, he is also described as “the unquestioned leader of ISIS”, who “relies on a set of trusted lieutenants, but he has empowered local commanders to make decisions and seems to have employed a somewhat decentralised command structure.” Many are veterans of the Iraqi Al-Qaida movement, others belonged to the Syrian Islamic opposition, the Al Nusra Front, that at one time enjoyed US military and financial support. Some are former members of Saddam Hussain’s Al Ba’ath Party. Baghdadi is also a master of propaganda and almost certain to have approved the inhuman video that is currently circulating on satellite telephones. It shows a blindfolded man dressed in white and kneeling on the ground somewhere along the Iraq/Syria border. A masked man dressed in black grabs him from behind. A few seconds later while slitting the victim’s throat he holds up the severed head, shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ (God is great). Such punishments, similar to the ones meted out by the Taliban, will become routine if ISIS succeeds in carving out their new mini-state in Syria and Iraq. This alone is a sufficient reason to block their attempts at nation building. But there is another reason why world leaders need to do their best to build a global coalition against Abu Bakr and his close associates. Their commitment to the cause of Sunni Islam means they have a fanatical hatred of everything associated with Shia Muslims who make up the majority of populations in Iran, Iraq and some smaller Gulf states like Bahrein. New extremist
group emerges
|
||
|
On his maiden visit to China, Ansari goes sightseeing
By Dinesh Kumar
Vice-President Hamid Ansari’s five-day visit to China has comprised a significant portion of sightseeing in addition to his official meetings with the top Chinese leadership and the President of Myanmar. Talking to the accompanying media, the Vice-President had self acknowledged that he had never before been to China and was looking forward to some tourism. In his first port of entry, Xi’an, located in Shaanxi province, Ansari visited the famous Terracotta Warriors Museum where sculptures of warriors, horses and chariots dating back 2,000 years were buried near Emperor Qin’s mausoleum in order to ‘protect’ and ‘accompany’ him into his next life. In Xi’an, Vice President Ansari also visited the Great Mosque while in Beijing he visited the must-see Great Wall of China, located about 70 km from the country’s capital, and the 700-year-old Forbidden City situated opposite the famous Tiananmen Square which was the scene of the June 1989 uprising that was brutally put down by the People’s Liberation Army. A traffic gesture
Traffic was stopped in both Xi’an and Beijing to permit the Vice President’s cavalcade to have a quick and uninterrupted drive to his hotel located in the heart of the city. In Xi’an, it is being considered as an exceptional gesture considering that the Chinese are not known to do it for even their top leadership. Not surprisingly, it was a novelty for the local people in Xi’an who had spontaneously lined the roads out of curiously to watch the cavalcade. But there was none of the traditional lining of the streets with flag waving children and adults to cheer a visiting dignitary. That seems all passé.
Bustling Xi’an
Whether it is early morning or late evening, both Xi’an and Beijing are bustling with activity. At 6 am in both cities, the city is fairly live with many people, including small children, walking on the sidewalks. People can be seen heading for work in cars and a few even on cycles. Bus services are already operational and mothers with children are busy getting to their respective destination. Street vendors have set up their stalls selling freshly cooked food. Then there is a section of other people, many of them elderly, exercising on the streets and in parks. In Xi’an, the metro service for the day is yet to begin but people have begun queuing at 6 am waiting for the shutters to be pulled up in order to allow commuters into the stations. The city is incredibly neat and clean. By the time it is dark, many people have already eaten dinner and the city centre and market places are teeming with thousands of people. Magnificently lit up pagodas and old buildings in both cities add to the daily festivity that is akin to what Diwali is like back in India.
A banquet to remember
The dinner banquet hosted by the Chinese for the visiting delegations from India and Myanmar will be remembered not only because of the occasion and the menu but also the venue and the musical and dance performances. The dinner, which followed soon after speeches commemorating the 60th anniversary of Panchsheel by Indian Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Myanmar President Thein Sein, was held in a banquet hall in the Great Hall of the People, an imposing building constructed in 1959 with the help of the Soviets at a time when China and the former Soviet Union were still friends. The colourful and regal banquet hall was adorned by giant-sized paintings that extended almost the entire length of two of the walls. Three flags each (total nine flags) of the three countries on flag stands were stationed a short distance from the centre table on which the top dignitaries were seated. The nine-course meal served in gold plated cutlery started with Hors d’Oeuvres followed by chicken soup served most uniquely in a coconut shell; assorted sea foods in thick soup; roasted lamb chops; fried prawns; baby Chinese cabbage and canola in sauce; stewed Codfish in Crock; desert and finally tea and coffee. There was of course also a choice of both soft drink and wine served in giant sized wine glasses. For Aqua lovers, water had to be specially asked for. The dinner was followed by Indian, Chinese and Myanmar music performed by the traditional Instruments Orchestra of the Central Conservatory of Music of China.
Punjabi restaurant manager
At Hilton Hotel in Beijing where media is staying, the Indian Embassy has organised Indian cuisine for those homesick for Indian food from Taj restaurant (no connection with Taj hotels in India), a chain of three Indian restaurants, in Beijing. The manager, Jasneet Singh, is a 33-year-old turbaned Sikh. Jasneet, who was born and brought up in Mumbai, has been in Beijing for the last 13 years working with this restaurant chain owned by a Parsi family friend from Mumbai. He moved to Beijing as a 20 year old without knowing the language which he learnt only after arriving here. “It is an easy language to learn”, he says. Jasneet is among a small community of about 20,000 Indians, many of them medical students, living in Beijing.
|
||
|
ISRO to put 5 foreign satellites in orbit today
Bangalore, June 29 The number of foreign satellites launched by ISRO will touch the mark of 40 when yet another polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV-C23) will blast off to the space tomorrow morning from the spaceport at Sriharikota near Chennai. The rocket will put five foreign satellites in the orbit under a commercial agreement negotiated by ISRO’s commercial arm Antrix. Besides the normal buzz associated with each launch by ISRO, the expected presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the event has introduced additional excitement for the launch. Spot-7, the French earth observation satellite, weighing 714 kg being launched tomorrow, is slated to be the heaviest satellite in ISRO’s kitty being launched under a commercial agreement. Four other satellites featuring in tomorrow’s launch are small ones — the 14-kg German satellite AISAT, two Canadian satellites weighing 15 kg each, and Velox-1, a Singaporean technology demonstrator weighing 7 kg. The total weight of all five satellites being launched tomorrow is 765 kg. The PSLV has lifted weight much more than that. For instance, navigation satellite IRNSS-1A launched from Sriharikota in July last year weighed 1,425 kg; but that is the maximum weight that can be launched with the help of the PSLV. Satellites, heavier than that are launched by ISRO by hiring the service of European Space Agency, a private company. Communication satellite GSAT-7, weighing 2,650 kg, and advanced weather satellite INSAT-3D, which weighs 2,060 kg, were both launched by ISRO last year using the Arianne rocket of ESA from ESA’s launch pad at French Guiana. ISRO has six more communications satellites of the GSAT series, weighing from two tonne to six tonne (GSAT-11) lined up for future launches. At least some of them, if not all six, will be launched with the help of “procured” vehicles.
The 40-mark
Miles to go
Even though ISRO successfully launched the geosynchronous launch vehicle powered by an indigenously built cryogebnic third stage in January and put the 1,982-kg GSAT-14 in the orbit, the official Indian space agency apparently is still not ready to use its home-built launchers for launching expensive communication satellites
|
|
DRDO develops armoured vehicles for troops
Chandigarh, June 29 The need for compact and highly manoeuvrable armoured shields that could provide adequate protection to 2-3 man teams was projected following the 26/11 Mumbai attack. Thereafter, the DRDO had taken up the project with the Ministry of Home Affairs. During the 26/11 operations in 2008, terrorists had engaged in prolonged gun battles with the security forces in buildings and built-up areas in Mumbai. Concerns have been expressed in the past over inadequate personal protection for troops deployed on such missions. The vehicles developed by the DRDO are basically mobile cabins made out of toughened materials with bullet proof windows for visibility that weigh about three tonnes each and can carry three fully equipped combatants. While providing all round protection from bullets and hand grenade blasts, these also have firing ports for retaliatory fire. They are electrically powered and are stated to have a low-turning radius and can manoeuvre around within a limited space and can be used in areas or terrain where normal vehicles would find the going difficult. However, given their weight, their employability would remain restricted to ground floors in buildings. The DRDO claims that the tracked version of the vehicle has also undergone a successful grenade trial at the Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory, Chandigarh.
|
||
|
Eyes on defence deals, Western powers rush to court Modi
New Delhi, June 29 Senior politicians from France, the United States and Britain arrive in quick succession over the next 10 days as Modi prepares to accelerate the modernisation of the country’s mostly Soviet-era weaponry. Modi intends to build up India’s military capabilities and gradually turn the world’s largest arms importer into a heavyweight manufacturer - a goal that has eluded every Prime Minister since Independence in 1947. On the table is a proposal circulated within the new government to raise caps on foreign investment - with one option to allow complete foreign ownership of some defence projects. “All countries are trying to make their case, especially as there is the sense that the Indian market will undergo a shift,” said Harsh Pant, professor of international relations at King’s College London. “They get a sense from their dealings that something dramatic is going to happen and they want first-mover advantage,” said Pant, who specialises in Indian defence. First to arrive in New Delhi will be French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, whose top priority is to close a stalled deal to sell India 126 Rafale fighter jets, built by Dassault Aviation , for an estimated $15 billion. US Senator John McCain is also due in India next week. McCain, whose Arizona constituency includes weapons makers such as Boeing and Raytheon, told the Senate on Thursday that Washington should seek to bolster India’s economic and military rise. “This is an area where US defence capabilities, technologies, and cooperation - especially between our defence industries - can benefit India enormously,” McCain said of India’s drive to modernise the armed forces. — Reuters
|
||
|
India writes to Swiss on secret accounts
New Delhi, June 29 “We have written to the Swiss authorities seeking details in this regard. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had promised that such a step will
be taken,” a senior Finance Ministry official said. The official said the request letter has cited the existing bilateral treaties and global protocols applicable to the two countries for getting information about bank and other details of Indians holding untaxed funds or hidden wealth. A spokesperson for Switzerland’s Secretariat for International Financial Matters (SIF) later said Swiss authorities were in touch with Indian and “Switzerland looks forward to working together with the new government of India in its fight against tax evasion.” The Swiss government has been reluctant to share details about the Indians named in a so-called ‘HSBC list’, which was ‘stolen’ by a bank employee.
PTI
Vital targets
|
||
|
Ex-health secys seek new law to redefine medical
education
Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service
Desiraju and Rao have admitted to corruption in the medical education sector while responding to a journal editorial on the subject by Samiran Nundy, Dean, Ganga Ram Institute for PG Education and Research, New Delhi. The editorial in the recent edition of “Current Medicine and Research” talks of how many five-star corporate hospitals have an institutionalised system of “facilitation charges” for diagnostic help given to physicians who refer patients for expensive procedures such as organ transplants which cost Rs 1 to 2 lakh. “The senior doctors whose pay is in astronomical figures are visited by financial experts at the end of every month and asked to justify if they deserve their salaries when the revenue they have generated for the hospital from investigations falls short of certain goals,” states the editorial. While Nundy’s article is another in a series started by Australian David Berger, whose piece on corruption in India’s medical sector in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) recently triggered a debate on the subject, what’s most critical is the response of former government secretaries in the matter. Berger had recounted in BMJ his experiences in India where he worked as a district medical officer in a charitable hospital in the Himalayas. The BMJ has yesterday announced a worldwide campaign against medical corruption starting from India. Back home, Desiraju has said in his response to Nundy that the Indian Medical Council Act 1956 and the Indian Nursing Act 1974 “both need to be set aside”. “We need a new legislation which redefines medical education and establishes norms of conduct. This law should reinforce the notion of medical ethics. A starting point could be the National Commission on Human Resources in Health Bill 2012, which was rejected by the parliamentary standing committee and can be rewritten,” says Desiraju, transferred from the Health Ministry to Consumer Affairs in 2013 by former Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad. Desiraju had reportedly objected to the return of the tainted Ketan Desai to the Medical Council of India on grounds that he faced several medical corruption charges. Sujatha Rao, meanwhile, was more open about her attack on the rot. She said in her response to Nundy that “incentives in India to be corrupt are high”. “In 2010, the bureaucracy was able to get the political executive and Parliament to legislate a mild form of regulation (The Clinical Establishments Regulation Act) which medical associations and lobby groups sabotaged,” Rao writes. She goes on to say how India is the only country which by policy permits private college owners to auction medical seats to the highest bidders. “Unlike Japan where only doctors can invest in hospitals, in India there is no bar. We have businessmen, liquor magnates, contractors and politicians directly or in partnership owning medical colleges…For according permission for medical colleges, politicians no longer take bribes; they instead have a few seats in the college earmarked for the candidates recommended by them. There are also colleges that reportedly take huge fee upfront in return for a guaranteed degree. It is for this reason that all private colleges got together in opposing the government move to have an entry exam for admission to colleges,” said Rao referring to the scrapping of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) last year under pressure from private hospitals and politicians. The NEET had mooted a single exam for entry to all colleges in India and carried a promise of ending capitation fee era.
|
||
|
Help us build healthy India, Modi tells US-based Indian doctors
New Delhi, June 29 Towards this effort, the government has already instructed the Medical Council of India to give priority based approvals to US-based Indian docs wanting to work in India. Vardhan has instructed the MCI to grant approvals within 15 days of any doctor making an application. Any delay would be construed as permission. Modi’s statement which Vardhan read out in the US today says, “It is my firm belief that our focus needs to go beyond health insurance. The way ahead lies in health assurance. We need to focus on preventive health care where public participation has a major role to play.” Vardhan also launched “Swasth India” portal would make it possible for any US-based Indian doctor to select the areas they wish to serve in India, seek and receive formal approval from the MCI on their qualifications, and address all other government issues within 15 days. The PM has identified the following areas where doctors can contribute –accepting teaching assignments, share knowledge on telemedicine, lend their expertise in fighting disease and help develop model primary health centres. AAPI is a professional body of physicians of Indian origin with a membership of over 52,000. It works through 138 local chapters, specialty societies and alumni associations. In January 2013, Modi, in his capacity as CM Gujarat, had addressed the Indo-US Health Summit organised by AAPI in his state. About MCI approvals to US based Indian docs, Vardhan said, “Before leaving on this trip, I had written to MCI that existing bottlenecks should be eased and if permission is held up beyond 15 days, then it should be deemed automatically granted.” On medical insurance, mentioned by Modi, Vardhan said the blueprint of the world’s largest universal health insurance programme is in the process of being sharpened under his personal gaze. It is partially inspired by US President Barack Obama’s grand insurance-for-all project which is popularly known as “Obamacare”, he said. Vardhan also sought AAPI’s help to draft a new health policy which Modi has asked him to prepare.
|
||
|
271 crorepatis, but UP MLAs still
want salary hike ‘to tackle inflation’
Citing the price rise and inflation, these otherwise feuding politicians have struck a rare unanimity on their pay hike — if not for combating the spiraling crimes against women or resurrecting the power sector. And so, amid the bedlam the House is now becoming so used to, senior leaders have openly aired the “urgent need” of revising their salaries and perks to at least enable them “offer tea and snacks to visitors”. This in a House that boasts of 271 crorepatis (multi-millionaires) among its 403 members. A report of the Association for Democratic Reforms compiled on the basis of affidavits submitted ahead of the 2012 Assembly polls, puts the figure of multi-millionaires at 67% of the House strength. Of them, the maximum crorepatis belong to the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) which has 140, followed by the BSP (63), the BJP (32), the Congress (18) and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (7). Prominent among them are Nawab Qazim Ali (Congress), Subhash (SP), Sanjay Jaiswal (Congress), Noor Rana
(BSP) and Vimla Singh (BJP). The voiceferous demand for a higher salary and revision of perks caught many seated in the visitors gallery by surprise as the fervent appeals came minutes before they drove off in their swanky
SUVs. The salaries and other emoluments of the state’s legislators were last revised February 7, 2010, when the government, then headed by Chief Minister
Mayawati, had announced: “The government has decided to hike the salary and perks of members in both Houses to Rs 50,000 per month from existing Rs 30,000.” Till then, legislators received Rs 3,000 a month as salary, Rs 15,000 as constituency allowance, Rs 6,000 as medical allowance and Rs 6,000 as secretarial allowance. Then, on March 7, 2013, political expediency prevailed on economic prudence as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Mohd Azam Khan announced that soon there would be another hike.
— IANS
Money matters: United they stand
|
||
|
BJP readies young MPs to counter Cong in House
Vibha Sharma Tribune News Service
New Delhi, June 29 They said the MPs had been asked to gather facts-based knowledge on economic issues — expected “harsh” economic steps and hike in rail passenger fare and freight rates. The ruling party is also expecting questions on foreign policy matters — the Iraq standoff and the emerging controversy involving China, which has released a new map showing the whole Arunachal Pradesh and large parts of Jammu and Kashmir as part of its territory. Apart from sermons on behaviour and etiquettes inside and outside Parliament, the party leadership has also asked its MPs to be updated on other “contentious” issues such as the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) scam and the alleged involvement of the RSS in it. The alleged scam, along with allegations of rape against Union Minister Nihal Chand Meghwal, is expected to form the frontline of the Congress’ attack against the BJP, sources said. The fact that RSS leader Suresh Soni, who was one of the speakers at the Surajkund workshop for BJP MPs, is being viewed with much interest by Congress leaders, for whom this was an open endorsement of the fact that the BJP’s ideological mentor—the RSS—is “much more than a cultural outfit”. The names of late RSS boss Sudarshan and Soni have surfaced during investigation into the multi-crore MPPEB scam by a special task force. Soni has termed it a “political conspiracy”.
|
||
|
India, Pak to resume trade talks next month
New Delhi, June 29 The meeting between Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her Pakistani counterpart Khurram Dastgir Khan slated for July 24 will mark the resumption of trade talks between the two countries. Both countries expect substantial progress in trade talks now that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly demonstrated his intention to accord priority to neighbourhood in India's foreign policy. It is understood that the two countries would consider all options of trade
liberalisation, including opening more trade routes, reducing sensitive lists and liberalising the visa regime. Pakistan's proposal to buy power from India might also be on the table. Sources say India is ready to bring down duties on crucial items including textiles from Pakistan to 5 per cent or below as agreed to in the trade normalisation schedule. But it would happen only when Pakistan extends NDMA to India. The Pakistani Cabinet, which reportedly appeared ready to extend the NDMA status to India in April, postponed the decision at the last minute preferring to wait for the new government to assume office in Delhi.
|
||
|
Gogoi wants
Brahmaputra board rejigged
Guwahati, June 29 Gogoi, in a letter to the PM, said creation of an authority was of paramount importance to tackle the perennial problem of flood and erosion, water-related hazards in Assam and the Northeast as a whole. “We are facing formidable challenges in the flood and erosion management sector due to non-implementation of the integrated water resources management of the complex Brahmaputra system,” Gogoi mentioned in the letter to the PM, adding, “Though the government had announced creation of Northeast Water Resources Authority for harnessing vast water resources in the Northeast region in 2004, it did not materialise due to objections raised by Arunachal Pradesh. Till this matter is resolved, the government may constitute the BRVA to tackle the problems in the region.”
|
||
|
Lankan Navy arrests 17 TN fishermen
Rameswaram, June 29 Fisheries Department officials said though the island nation had released the fishermen arrested earlier, their boats were yet to be released. The Naval personnel had on June 24 arrested 11 fishermen of Pudukottai district. They were later freed. The series of arrests of fishermen had led Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, seeking immediate release of the fishermen. Jayalalithaa had also renewed her plea for nullifying the "unconstitutional" Indo-Sri Lankan Agreements of 1974 and 1976 and demanded that steps be taken to restore the traditional rights of Indian fishermen.
— PTI
|
||
|
Cong demands SIT probe into MP exam scam
New Delhi, June 29 Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said a court monitored that a special investigation team (SIT) be constituted to probe the matter. The Congress has already accused MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and his wife of being involved in the scam related to filling up of posts in several state departments. Shakeel Ahmed, a Congress spokesperson, said, “Calls were made from MP CM’s residence to some RSS leaders. The RSS claims it has nothing to do with politics. Let the court probe the scam.”
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
A battle of nerves has begun between the University Grants Commission and students who sought admissions last year to the BTech component of the now-scrapped four-year undergraduate programme of Delhi University.
New Delhi, June 29
The government has instructed the MCI to give priority based approvals to US-based Indian docs wanting to work in India
Lucknow, June 29