New Delhi, August 16
Two teenagers suffocated under a heap of sand which they were collecting to make statues for the Janmashtami festival in east Delhi today.

According to the police, four other children were also buried under the sand, but they were saved by the locals.

The incident took place at east Delhi's New Ashok Nagar locality on Saturday. At about 1.30 pm, about a dozen children had gone to collect sand from a runnel that runs adjacent to New Ashok Nagar.

The deceased, identified as Vineet (16) and Ashok (15), were among a group of teenagers who had planned to collect the sand in polythene bags and take them back home in the Trilokpuri area.

The group began digging beside the runnel near the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research Centre.

"The children were looking for sand which was a little wet. When they started digging at the base of the heap of sand, it collapsed on them," said a Delhi Police officer.

According to the officer, six children from the group were buried under the sand.

"The other children tried to pull out their friends, but failed as the sand was heavy. Some of them then ran towards the main road and informed the locals," the officer said.

The locals managed to pull out all the six children, but Vineet and Ashok had died.

"The locals arrived at the spot within a few minutes, but the children had suffocated by then," the officer added.

A police team also reached the spot. Vineet and Ashok were rushed to the Lal Bahadur Shastri hospital in east Delhi where they were declared dead.

Their bodies were sent for an autopsy and a case under appropriate section of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the New Ashok Nagar police station.

New Delhi, August 16
The marks of English Language Comprehension Skills, asked in second paper of civil services (preliminary) examination, will not be included for gradation, the government said today.

"The union government has decided that for the civil services (preliminary) examination, 2014 to be held on August 24, this section on English Language Comprehension Skills (Class X Level) will not count for gradation or merit," it said in a release.

Candidates must, therefore, note that they do not have to answer these questions. They will not be evaluated, the release said.

The Paper II of the examination is of 200 marks and of two hours duration.

"The duration of the Paper II would remain two hours and candidates can utilize the entire time in answering all questions except those in the section containing English Language Comprehension Skills," it said.

The maximum marks for Paper II would be "200 minus the marks earmarked for the English Language Comprehension Skills".

A controversy had recently erupted over the pattern of civil services preliminary examination as students demanding change in the pattern of Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT), Paper II had taken to the streets waging a violent agitation.

Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Jitendra Singh had on August 4 also said in Parliament that English section marks will not be included for gradation or merit in civil services exam.

In addition, one more attempt will be given next year to students who had appeared in 2011 civil services examination, Singh had said. There are two compulsory papers of 200 marks each in the civil services preliminary examination. These papers are also known as CSAT I and CSAT II.

The CSAT-II paper carries questions on comprehension, interpersonal skills including communication skills, logical reasoning and analytical ability, decision-making and problem-solving, general mental ability, basic numeracy and English language skills (of Class X level). — PTI

New Delhi, August 16
In a bid to promote optimal use of treated effluent, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) will be holding an awareness workshop on August 20 wherein it will promote the usage of treated sewage for non-potable purpose among the various government agencies.

The workshop will see participation from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the municipal bodies among other government departments and agencies.

According to the DJB, the demands by various government agencies put pressure on the existing water resources, which can be reduced by the potential use of treated effluent. So, the DJB CEO has already written to various government departments encouraging them to use treated effluent for all non-potable purpose.

The Lt. Governor and Chief Secretary, Delhi, have also directed the departments concerned to use treated effluent as far as possible to help reduce the stress on groundwater and drinking water.

The workshop will focus on the potential uses of the treated effluent and will enable DJB to interact directly with other departments and help them understand the benefits of using treated effluent. It will also help the DJB to address any doubt or concern on the issue, if any. The DJB proposes to use this platform to present a global picture on the success of usage treated effluent across the world.

The DJB is actively promoting the use of treated effluent in order to bridge the gap between the demand and supply of potable water in the city and optimise the existing water resources. The treated effluent, produced at its waste water treatment plants (WWTPs), is fit to be used for non-potable purposes, such as irrigation, horticulture, power plants, water bodies, construction activities, etc., which will make additional water available for potable purposes.

Various government corporations and entities such as the DMRC, DTC and the Railways consume huge quantities of water for washing and other need based purposes. Also, the DDA, municipal corporations and others use borewells to meet their substantial demand for irrigational and horticulture purposes. 

New Delhi, August 16
Following the call given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the ramparts of Red Fort on the 68th Independence Day, BJP Delhi Pradesh president Satish Upadhyay today announced that the BJP legislators and councillors of Delhi will adopt one school and one jhuggi cluster in their areas.

The party will also soon formulate a long-term plan for an all-round development of women.

As part of the initiative, the legislotors and councillors would get toilets constructed and R.O. tanks installed in their areas. Expenses for these facilities would be met from their funds.

New Delhi, August 16
About 200 protesters had gathered outside the Manipur Bhawan in New Delhi this evening to protest against the imposition of Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPc) at Ukhrul district of Manipur.

The Section 144 CrPc bans the unlawful assembly of five or more persons.

The protest soon turned violent and the protesters allegedly started pelting the police officers with stones. This led to a lathicharge, which was followed by a violent clash between the protesters and the police. "Two policemen and two protesters were injured," said a police officer. He further said one person was detained after the incident.

The windscreen of a police van was also shattered by the stone-pelting, he added.

New Delhi, August 16
A 23-year-old woman allegedly committed suicide in front of her two children following an altercation with her husband at their residence in south Delhi's R K Puram locality on Friday night.

The woman, identified as Roba, directed her son to witness her alleged suicide and then inform his father about it.

Roba belonged to West Bengal and was working as a maid at the residence of a Brigadier in Delhi. The police refused to disclose the name of the Brigadier or whether he is serving or retired. She lived at Nivedita Kunj in R K Puram with her husband, Sonu, and two children aged one and five. Her husband works at a petrol pump in Sector-3 of R K Puram. Sonu and Roba were married six years ago when they both worked at the petrol pump in R K Puram.

A police officer said Roba allegedly committed suicide after a fight with her husband on Friday night. The officer said that the couple often fought as Sonu would reach home late every day.

"The woman's husband has told the police that the couple had got into a fight when he had reached home late on Friday. He works on the evening shift and generally reaches home by 10 pm. However on Friday, he was late as he had some work at the station," the officer said.

Sonu reached his house at about 11 pm and knocked on the door. As his wife refused to open it, he left the place.

Roba then allegedly made a noose using her dupatta and hanged herself, making her five-year-old son witness the act. Her other child was also present at that time. She had instructed her son to call his father after she died.

The child called his father on his mobile phone. When the man arrived at midnight, the child opened the door for him. Sonu found his wife hanging from a ceiling fan.

The family stood by Roba's body in shock for hours before reporting the matter to the police at 6:30 am on Saturday.

"The five-year-old child narrated the entire incident to the police and admitted to seeing his mother die," said the officer.