The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Maharashtra Votes 2014
Modi: Won’t criticise Sena as tribute to Balasaheb
Shiv Kumar
Tribune News Service

Mumbai, October 5
Addressing back-to-back rallies in Maharashtra for the second day today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sounded a conciliatory note towards the Shiv Sena and launched an all-out attack on the Congress and the NCP.

Modi said he was refraining from criticising the party due to respect towards Bal Thackeray. “This is the first election without Balasaheb Thackeray, for whom I have a great respect. It is out of this respect that I am not criticising the Shiv Sena,” Modi said.

He went on to say that politics did not come in the way of his liking for the late Sena chief. “These things are above politics. There are feelings which should not be linked to politics,” he said.

At a rally in Sangli’s Tasgaon, where former Home Minister RR Patil is contesting, Modi targeted NCP leader Sharad Pawar for failing to address the problems of people despite being the Chief Minister and Union Agriculture Minister.

“There is no way you can imbibe the characteristics of Shivaji Maharaj,” Modi said of Pawar. The Prime Minister went on to say that Pawar should have picked up a few policies of the revered Maratha king. “Had you implemented the water management techniques adopted by Shivaji Maharaj, farmers in Maharashtra would not have been committing suicide,” Modi said.

Appealing to the Maratha voters who comprise the bulk of the population in the state’s sugar belt, Modi said it was the BJP which gave the respect due to the Maratha king.

“The BJP government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee named the Mumbai airport after Shivaji Maharaj. We even named Victoria Terminus after Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj which you should have done when you were CM,” Modi said of Pawar.

Modi’s attack on Pawar came a day after the NCP chief pointed out that history text books in Gujarat insulted Shivaji Maharaj. “In Gujarat, they call Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj a thief because he plundered Surat,” Pawar said at a rally on Saturday. The NCP chief pointed out that the textbooks were written when Modi was Chief Minister of that state.

At another rally in neighbouring Kolhapur, Modi accused the Congress and the NCP of looting Maharashtra. In his trademark interactive style Modi drew cheers when he asked the gathering whether they would let the loot continue. “There is no difference between the Congress and the NCP... Now is the time to free Maharashtra from the Congress and the NCP,” Modi said.

Meanwhile in Mumbai, Shiv Sena activists descended on the Mahalaxmi race course grounds on Sunday morning to clean up the litter left behind after Modi’s rally last night. “We are adopting Gandhian principles to clean up the area,” Shiv Sena corporator Arun Dudhwadkar who led the effort later told reporters.

BJP backstabbed us by snapping ties, says Aditya

Nashik, October 5
Sharpening its attack on erstwhile ally BJP, the Shiv Sena has accused it of backstabbing late Sena supremo Bal Thackeray by snapping ties with his party over seat sharing in the Maharashtra Assembly elections.

“The BJP grew in Maharashtra by holding the hand of Shiv Sena. However, as soon as the party came to power at the Centre, it snapped ties with the Sena. By doing this, the BJP has backstabbed late Balasaheb Thackeray,” Shiv Sena’s youth wing president Aditya Thackeray said here last night.

Aditya said, “Nonetheless, the BJP parted ways with us over seat sharing.” He was speaking at an election rally held here for Shiv Sena candidates Ajay Boraste (Nashik-Central) and Chandrakant Lavate (Nashik-East).

Accusing the Congress and the NCP of indulging in corruption and holding them responsible for the problems like load shedding in the state, Aditya asked people to defeat these parties. — PTI

Cost-effective treatment for 40 killer diseases on cards
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 5
With affordable healthcare out of bounds for commoners, the government has decided to issue guidelines on cost-effective treatments for top killer diseases, including cancer, cardio vascular diseases, diabetes and TB among others.

The move involves publishing, for the first time, standard treatment procedures and best technologies for the management of identified diseases. When guidelines are issued, patients will be able to make informed choices about the treatment technologies they wish to choose for a given medical condition.

The job has been given to the Medical Technologies Assessment Board recently formed on the lines of the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to provide national guidance and advice on healthcare issues, including disease management.

The board has already identified 15 top priority diseases for the project after consultations with state governments. These priority conditions are cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, TB, malaria, mental disorders, suicides and substance, diarrheal diseases, road accidents, respiratory tract infections, chronic kidney disease (including management of renal failure), neurological diseases (including epilepsy, dementia, schizophrenia), HIV/AIDS, dengue and other vector-borne diseases, hepatitis, snake and scorpion bites and malnutrition.

The DG, ICMR, VM Katoch, today told The Tribune, “The target is to issue cost effective treatment guidelines for 40 diseases over five years; five this year. By 2015, the target is to establish a formal system, wherein formal advice on management strategies for a range of diseases will become available. Work has already begun on 15 priority diseases identified following consultations with state governments. Some guidelines are ready.”

The guidelines would be discussed at the meeting of state health secretaries. “SoPs for many diseases are ready and we will issue the guidance after discussing the same with states on October 9,” Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said.

The move will help state governments reduce the cost of treatments being offered by healthcare providers for several killer diseases. At present, hospitals charge at whim to manage heart conditions, renal failures, cancers, mental disorders and other conditions. Formal guidelines will give patients access to expert advice on best treatment technologies for a range of conditions and choose accordingly.

“At present, there are no standard treatment guidelines for cancers, CVDs etc. People are clueless about which treatment to choose. This allows healthcare providers to overcharge. Often, one treatment costs differently in different hospitals. Standard guidelines will end this malpractice,” Katoch says.

The Medical Technologies Assessment Board is working under the advice of experts led by MS Valiathan, noted cardiac surgeon and innovator of several indigenous medical technologies.

The move
The move involves publishing standard treatment procedures and best technologies for the management of identified diseases
Patients will be able to make choices about the treatment technologies they wish to choose for a given medical condition
Among the priority conditions are cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, TB, malaria, mental disorders etc

Ambedkar’s supporters seek PM’s help to acquire property in UK

London, October 5
Supporters of Dr BR Ambedkar have sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to acquire a residential property in London, where the architect of India’s Constitution lived during the 1920s, and convert it into a memorial dedicated to him.

The Federation of Ambedkarite and Buddhist Organisations, UK, which had sought 4 million pounds (40 crore rupees) grant from Maharashtra Government to acquire the property is yet to hear a final word and with the imposition of the President’s Rule in the state “only the Prime Minister Narendra Modi can salvage the situation with prompt intervention,” Arun Kumar, General Secretary of the Federation said last night.

Kumar said, “unless a decision is made quickly, we may not get the property as another credible buyer has come forward to acquire?the property... At the moment, the estate agent acting on behalf of the seller is holding this property for us.?If we don’t get confirmation from the government, he would not be able to hold?on to it for a long time.”

The total cost includes the current asking price for the 2,050 sq ft property on King Henry’s Road here as advertised at 3.1 million pounds, an estimated 2,17,000 pounds as stamp duty, legal costs, house insurance costs and necessary renovations to the property. — PTI

Six new air strips in Arunachal Pradesh to be ready by 2015
Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 5
Six new air strips will be ready in Arunchal Pradesh by the end of 2015 to aid rapid military mobilisation.

The Air Force is setting up radars, air defence sensors and surface to air missiles in the North-East. This will be a long drawn process, but the good news is that the mud-paved British-era advanced landing grounds (ALGs) are being converted into regular concrete paved runaways to handle fixed wing transport planes.

These six ALGs will be force multipliers of future as special operations planes such as the C-130-J and C-17 will be able to operate from landing ground that dot various folds of the Himalayas in Arunachal Pradesh. These planes can carry anything from troops to tanks and have all-weather flying abilities.

"In the next five years, the northeast will be sufficiently capable," Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshall Arup Raha told the media yesterday. Six of the ALGs in the North-East will be ready by the end of 2015, he said, adding: "These are being expanded. We can run fixed wing operations and will aid in mobilisation," the IAF Chief said. The project of the six ALG's is expected to cost Rs 1,723 crore and is running four years behind schedule. It was originally conceived in 2008 as part of the Prime Minister special package for the North-East.

The scope of work includes expanding the length with regular landing surface allowing more types of planes to land. The existing mud-paved ALGs are too small in length and allow only very small aircraft to land and have a non-existent ground support. These are rendered unusable during rains.

The project will cover ALGs at Tuting, Mechuka, Pasighat, Along, Walong, Ziro and Tawang (helipad).

The IAF has based its Sukhoi30- MKI, the frontline fighter jets, at Tezpur, Chabua and Hasimara - all in the North-East.

Project to cost Rs 1,723 cr
The project of six mud-paved British-era advanced landing grounds is expected to cost Rs 1,723 crore
Special operations planes such as the C-130-J and the C-17 will be able to operate from the new air strips
The project will cover landing grounds at Tuting, Mechuka, Pasighat, Along, Walong, Ziro and Tawang (helipad)

Ex-Jharkhand minister held for Maoist links

Former Jharkhand minister and Congress MLA Yogendra Sao. PTI

New Delhi/Ranchi, October 5
Former Jharkhand minister and Congress legislator Yogendra Sao has been arrested in New Delhi for alleged links with Maoist guerrillas, the police said on Sunday.

“Sao was arrested by a CID team with the help of the Delhi Police from a house in Subhash Nagar on Saturday night. He will be brought to Ranchi on transit remand,” police spokesman Anurag Gupta told reporters in Delhi. Gupta said a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) team was camping in New Delhi.

A Hazaribagh court last month issued an arrest warrant against Sao over his alleged links with the rebels. Sao, 50, resigned from the cabinet over the issue last month. He allegedly raised two criminal organisations — Jharkhand Tiger — a group linked to the Maoists, and Jharkhand Bachao Andolan.

A police official said that till now, 11 members of these organisations have been arrested for their involvement in several heinous cases in Jharkhand.

The police last month arrested five members of Jharkhand Tiger group in Hazaribagh. Police sources said those nabbed have admitted that the groups were raised with Sao’s support.

They also revealed that Sao was providing arms, ammunition and vehicles for committing murders besides carrying out extortions and kidnappings for ransom. Sao is involved in 13 cases of murder, attempt to murder, rioting, criminal intimidation and extortion in the state.

“The Jharkhand Police had informed us that Yogendra Sao was hiding in Delhi to evade the police dragnet. A joint operation was launched with Jharkhand Police and Sao was apprehended Saturday evening,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch), Ashok Chand.

“He has been taken on transit remand by the Jharkhand Police,” he added. — IANS

Camel sacrifice tradition ends on Eid in Rajasthan

Jaipur, October 5
Respecting the Rajasthan Government’s decision to adopt camel as the state animal, Anjuman Society of Khandan-e-Amiriya (ASKeA) in Tonk district has decided to stop its 150-year-old tradition of sacrificing camel on the day of Eid-ul-Zuha slated for tomorrow.

“There would be no more camel sacrifice on Eid-ul-Zuha falling tomorrow, and the 150-year-old tradition of Khandan- E-Amiriya of Tonk ends now to save the animal and to maintain peace and communal harmony in the Tonk district,” Nawab Hamid Ali Khan, a senior member of royal family and General Secretary of ASKeA said.

“There was no political or social pressure on Nawab family, it was our independent decision in the wake of Rajasthan government giving the status of state animal to camel,” Hamid justified.

In recent years there were different voices by some activists against Nawab family’s animal sacrifice, but ASKeA was comprised of over 7000 to 8000 families who followed this tradition in the royal family fort every year on Eid-Ul-Zuha, Hamid said.

In tomorrow’s celebration ASKeA families would gather in Nawab haveli and would go for he-goat sacrifice to observe Eid-ul-Zuha, he said. — PTI

Won’t spare those behind stampede: Bihar Govt

Patna, October 5
The Bihar Government today vowed to punish those responsible for “lapses” that led to the stampede at Gandhi Maidan here on October 3, leaving 33 people dead and 29 injured. The government has instituted an inquiry into the tragedy and it is being conducted by Home Secretary Amir Subhani and Additional Director General of Police, Headquarters, Gupteshwar Pandey.

“The state government is not going to spare anyone responsible for ‘lapses’ that led to the stampede outside Gandhi Maidan,” Water Resources Department Minister Vijay Chaudhary said.

He said the probe team would jointly hold a public inquiry at the district collectorate on October 7 to hear accounts of eyewitnesses and others willing to depose.

The government would also publish advertisements in newspapers appealing to the people to share information about the incident, he said. On the lack of lighting arrangement at the venue on the day of the Dasehra festivity, Chaudhary said the state government would await the probe report to act.

He said the injured were getting “proper treatment” in the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH).

ADGP Gupteshwar Pandey said the probe team had taken statements of the injured at the PMCH, magistrates and police officers deputed on duty for the Dasehra festival at Gandhi Maidan. Pandey said the probe would be completed within a week and a report would be submitted to the government. The state BJP today submitted a memorandum to Governor DY Patil, charging the state government with dereliction of duty and failure to learn lessons from past incidents. — PTI

4 officials removed
Patna: Patna Divisional Commissioner N Vijaylaxmi, DIG Patna Range Ajitabh Kumar, District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma and SSP Manu Maharaj were on Sunday removed from their posts by the Bihar Government. The transfers are seen as a fallout of the stampede.

Four lakh still reeling under floods in Assam

Guwahati, October 5
Nearly four lakh people were still reeling under the impact of floods in Assam though the water level was receding in most parts of the state.

According to the daily flood report by Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), 3.7 lakh people across three districts are still affected due to the floods.

As many as 202 villages in Goalpara, Kamrup Rural and Dhemaji districts are flood-hit, with 3.66 lakh people affected in Goalpara alone. The authorities are operating 18 relief camps and shelter homes, where around 6,000 people were staying.

Crops in over 40,000 hectare were under water across the state. In Goalpara alone, crops in over 37,000 hectare have been affected, affecting nearly 83,000 families depending on agriculture.

During this latest wave of flood, 44 people have lost their lives. Of them, 20 persons died in Goalpara, followed by 16 in Kamrup Rural, six in Kamrup Metro and one each in Morigaon and Dhubri districts.

In Goalpara, 81,582 houses were either fully or partially damaged due to the floods.

Besides, a large number of roads and bridges, government infrastructure like schools, health centres and offices have been damaged in many districts. — PTI

Govt likely to roll out Health Assurance Mission by year-end

New Delhi, October 5
The government hopes to roll out its ambitious Universal Health Assurance Mission (UHAM) by the end of this year as the Health Ministry is ready with the details of its proposal which envisages bringing all Indians under health insurance cover.

“We are prepared with the scheme. We are in the process of discussion with the states and expect that the first phase of the scheme will be rolled out soon,” ministry sources said about what they have described as the world’s largest public health insurance programme.

The poor will get treatment free of cost, Health Ministry sources said, as they expect premium to be low for the rest of the population due to the country’s predominantly young population.

The highlights of the proposed UHAM are that 50 essential drugs with a package of diagnostics and about 30 AYUSH drugs will be made available to all citizens at government hospitals and health centres across the country.

A package of preventive and positive health information will be made available to all citizens and health insurance will be a built-in feature of the UHAM.

UHAM was a key poll promise of the BJP and Health Minister Harsh Vardhan had set up an expert group to prepare a roadmap to implement it for the entire population. It also figured in the President’s inaugural address to Parliament on June 9. — PTI

BJP hits back at Sonia for criticising Modi govt

The Congress-led government could not form an SIT on black money in two years despite Supreme Court directives. We constituted SIT on the very first Cabinet meeting…the previous government was only making tall claims.
Ravi Shankar Prasad, union minister

New Delhi, October 5
Hitting back at Sonia Gandhi for criticising Modi dispensation’s 100 days rule, the BJP today said the party has given a working government to the country with a strong Prime Minister and that the Congress president’s speech writers have “not done their home work properly”.

Taking on Narendra Modi, Sonia had yesterday accused him of trying to “show off” as if everything has been done only after his government came to power and asked the Prime Minister what happened to his promise of bringing back the black money stashed abroad.

Reacting to Sonia’s attack, Union Minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said: “I am pained to say that even after remaining out of power, Soniaji speech writers don’t do home work. That is why she speaks sometime such things. She will realise her mistakes if she sees it in a mirror.”

Countering the charges on black money issue, Prasad said: “Your government could not form a SIT on black money in two years despite Supreme Court directives. We constituted SIT on the very first Cabinet meeting. Now the entire world including Switzerland is ready to cooperate with us (on sharing information on black money).”

Making a comparison between the present government and the previous Congress regime, he said the previous government was only “making tall claims while Modi’s government is working government where decisions were made and implemented.” Prasad further claimed that the Congress PM was a weak one while BJP has given a strong PM to the country. — PTI

BJP pulls out of felicitation of UP violence accused

Moradabad, October 5
The BJP today pulled out of event to felicitate party leaders and workers, who were arrested following clashes and communal tension in the district in July.

The party said that the decision was taken as its state leaders were busy campaigning in poll-bound Haryana and Maharashtra, but the Samajwadi Party claimed that it was due to “political pressure” that BJP had taken a “U-turn”.

The BJP had drawn severe flak when it had felicitated MLAs Suresh Rana and Sangeet Som, who had been accused of involvement the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, in November last year.

BJP’s district unit chief Girish Tyagi today said that it was not a party function but an event organised by the Arya Samaj in Amroha.

“The BJP does not want to take up the issue.... So the BJP has withdrawn its participation as directed by our state chief. Maximum people from the BJP were invited so people interpreted as being sponsored by the party,” he said. The Congress took a swipe at BJP saying it has taken the decision out of “helplessness”.— PTI

Gandhian institutes battle over ‘war symbols’ on Mahatma’s books
Manas Dasgupta

Ahmedabad, October 5
Two Ahmedabad-based Gandhian institutions are on the warpath over the issue of using “war symbols” on the cover of some of the reprinted books of the Mahatma. Both the institutions were set up by Mahatma Gandhi when he was living in the Sabarmati Ashram in the 1920s.

The Gujarat Vidyapeeth, the deemed university imparting Gandhian education, has stopped keeping books reprinted by the Navjivan Trust, which has the exclusive rights to publish the Mahatma’s books, because it felt that some of the pictures it carried on the cover of the reprinted books depicted “violence” and were against the Gandhian thought of non-violence.

Vidyapeeth Vice-Chancellor Sudarshan Aiyengar saw it a “calculated effort to saffronise Gandhiji and his institutions”. Asserting that the Vidyapeeth would not keep the reprinted books, Aiyengar said the original books did not have colourful pictures of Hindu symbols such as ‘Sudarshan Chakra’, conch shell or pictures depicting characters of the Mahabharat, such as Arjuna and Lord Krishna.

One of the books it was strongly against was a reprint of ‘Bhagwat Gita: According to Gandhi’, a copy of which was gifted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to US President Barrack Obama during his recent US trip. In a letter, Aiyengar said such symbols were against “Gandhi’s aesthetic” and depicted “violence” whereas the central theme of Gandhian thought revolves around “non-violence.”

He maintained that in the “Gandhian thought ahimsa (non-violence) is the most important aspect. For him, Gita was never a message for war but for self-reformation and self-discipline. Putting any symbol on Gandhian literature doesn’t come under Gandhian aesthetic. Navjivan is not a commercial press, its job is not to make profit, but to spread the Gandhian thought. The whole issue is of self-reliance and not of profit.”

Navjivan Trust MD Vivek Desai disagreed with Aiyengar and advised to confine himself to his “real job” of teaching instead of transgressing into the business. Desai, who launched autobiographies of Gandhiji in the Punjabi and the Kashmiri, said “instead of raising fingers at the books being published, the Vidyapeeth should better focus on teaching, which is its primary job.”

“Is publishing pictures of ‘Sudarshan Chakra’, violence? Such thoughts are of low-level. The vidyapeeth’s job is to impart education while my (trust) job is to publish. If publishing Sudarshan Chakra is a himsa (violence) so be it. Our job is to print and theirs (vidyapeeth) is to teach,” he asserted.

Aiyengar in a statement regretted the “saffronisation” of the Gandhian institution. “If the MD of the trust has said our job is only to teach, I would like to remind that our job is to follow the footprints of Gandhi. This is an unfortunate statement by the MD.”

Bitter war over legacy
It is a calculated effort to saffronise Gandhiji and his institutions. The original books did not have colourful pictures of Hindu symbols such as ‘Sudarshan Chakra’, conch shell or pictures depicting characters of Mahabharata such as Arjuna and Lord Krishna… Such symbols depict violence.
Sudarshan Aiyengar, gujarat vidyapeeth v-c
Is publishing pictures of ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ violence? Such thoughts are of low-level. The vidyapeeth’s job is to impart education while my (trust) job is to publish. If publishing ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ is himsa (violence) so be it. Our job is to print and theirs (vidyapeeth) is to teach.
Vivek Desai, navjivan trust md

Javdekar defends live telecast of RSS chief’s address on DD

Nagpur, October 5
Defending the live telecast by Doordarshan of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s address on Dasehra, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javdekar on Sunday said the government wants to instill professionalism.

The hour-long broadcast on October 3 by DD for the first time of an RSS function had stoked a row with Congress and CPI(M) attacking the government for “misuse” of the state broadcaster while BJP defended it saying RSS genuinely contributed to patriotism and always patronised ‘justice to all’ philosophy.

“Doordarshan is an autonomous organisation and we want to instill professionalism. Therefore, there is nothing wrong and no interference in its functioning,” Javdekar said in reply to a question at a press conference here today.

Dismissing criticism by the Congress and Left parties over the issue, he said, “We have lifted ban on DD.” Javadekar asked as to why it was not telecast live all these years.

“When other private channels are also showing live the annual speech of RSS Sarsanghchalak Bhagwat, what is wrong in DD also showing it,” he said.

Bhagwat had at a customary function on Dasehra described Hindutva as the country’s “national identity” and the “thread of unity” running through its diversities. He had also patted the Narendra Modi government for initiatives on national security, economy and international relations in a short period of four months.

On BJP’s prospects in the October 15 Maharashtra Assembly elections, he said the state will follow the national trend and his party will win with an absolute majority, but did not specify any numbers.

To a question on why BJP was not projecting a chief ministerial nominee in the polls, when it had projected Narendra Modi as the Prime Ministerial candidate in Lok Sabha elections, Javdekar said there is no dearth of candidates and the leader will be chosen during a meeting of elected MLAs. — PTI

Gogoi kicks off ‘Clean Assam Campaign’
Appreciates Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Modi

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi sweeps a road during the ‘Clean Guwahati’ campaign on Sunday. PTI

Guwahati, October 5
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today formally launched ‘Clean Assam Campaign’ today. As part of the campaign, Gogoi visited the Latashil puja ground and broomed the compound along with the office bearers of the puja committee.

After launching the campaign, Gogoi tweeted “Formally kicked off the Clean Assam Campaign in Guwahati city. It evoked a good response.”

“Our government had started the Clean Guwahati Campaign in February 2012,” he said.

Appealing to the public to join hands, he said: “Cleanliness is next to godliness. When I was a school student, we participated in cleanliness drive at Harijan Colony, Jorhat, every Saturday. Let us all join hands together to make Assam clean and green. Together we can make it happen.”

Later in a statement, Gogoi appreciated the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said: “We support any good cause and our government with the help of public organisations, NGOs, puja mandaps and individuals would make an all-out endeavour to make Assam clean and green.”

The campaign would begin in all educational institutions, government offices and public institutions in a phased manner in a mission mode across the nook and corner of the state, he said.

The Chief Minister had directed all ministers, MLAs, Deputy Commissioners and senior officials of concerned departments to free the puja mandaps and environment of junk and dirt.

The Chief Minister also handed over the keys of garbage disposal vehicles to NGOs for various wards under Guwahati Municipal Corporation. — PTI

Saibaba temple gets Rs 4.10 cr in three days

Shirdi, October 5
The Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust here has received donations worth over Rs 4.10 crore, including cash and jewellery in the last three days, officer bearers of the Trust said.

“As many as 1.7 lakh devotees from different parts of the country visited the shrine to take ‘darshan’ of Saibaba in the last three days,” Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust’s executive officer Rajendra Jadhav said today.

“The 96th death anniversary of Saibaba was observed on the day of Dasehra, for which people thronged the temple premises,” Jadhav added.

The Trust received total donations worth Rs 4,10,77,000, which included cash and ornaments of gold and silver, he said.

“The offerings were received in donation boxes, online, during a procession in the city on October 3, also through donation counters set up on the temple premises. Some devotees gave cheques, demand drafts, while some others paid cash for free meal service,” Jadhav said.

According to its accounts officer Dilip Zirpe, the Sansthan also received 9,000 notes of foreign currency in the donation boxes. — PTI

Fresh tension in Gonda, 16 held

Gonda, October 5
Fresh tension erupted in Gonda today after people threw stones on the police while it was dispersing the crowd, which had assembled following a clash last night over idol immersion, the police said.

So far 16 persons of two communities have been arrested in connection with the clash last night which took place when a slipper fell among devotees who were on their way to immerse idols at Ektra crossing, they said.

In the morning, while efforts were being made to disperse the crowd which had assembled near the Padey Bazaar police outpost, some persons threw stones on policemen from rooftops, they said.

Later, heavy force was rushed to the spot to control the situation.

Youths of a community staged a demonstration near two shops which were torched last night.

District Magistrate Ajay Kumar Upadhyaya said that an FIR has been lodged againt 33 persons and 150 unidentified, and and 16 people of two communities have been arrested in connection with last night’s incident.

The police was keeping a strict vigil in the city and people have been appealed to maintain harmony, Upadhyaya said.

Twelve persons, including policemen, were injured when members of two communities clashed and pelted stones at each other during idol immersion in Kotwali area yesterday. — PTI

2 women arrested for Burdwan blast

Burdwan (WB), October 5
Two women were arrested and remanded in police custody for two weeks today in connection with the explosion at Khagragarh here that left two suspected militants dead.

Superintendent of Police SMH Mirza said the two women - Rajira Bibi alias Rumi hailing from Karimpur in Nadia and Amina Bibi hailing from Lalbagh in Murshidabad were arrested from Khargragarh this morning.Rajira Bibi is the widow of suspected militant Shakil Ahmed, who was killed in the explosion in a house at Khagragarh on October 2, while Amina Bibi is the wife of Hasan Saheb, who was critically injured in the blast and is under treatment at Burdwan Medical College and Hospital.

They had been detained on the day of the blast and were arrested this morning. They were later produced before a local court which sent them to police custody, Mirza said. The CID of West Bengal police is looking into possible involvement of terror outfits like LeT and HuJI in the blast which left two suspected militants dead. Rajira Bibi had said she and her husband were staying in the house for about three months, while Amina Bibi had said she was there for about one and a half months.

It is suspected that the victims of the explosion were associated with a militant outfit as a large number of watch dials, SIM cards, and other tools required to make improvised explosive devices were found in the house, police had said yesterday. — PTI

Pro-Jaya protests continue in TN
Private bus services suspended, schools to remain closed tomorrow

Chennai, October 5
Protests and fasts continued in Tamil Nadu today over jailing of AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa in the illegal assets case with bus services being suspended in many districts and a private schools’ federation announcing that their schools would remain closed on October 7.

Officials said passengers were affected as over 6,000 private buses suspended their services in the state, barring three districts, protesting the conviction of Jayalalithaa by a Special Court at Bangalore on September 27.

Responding to the call given by the Federation of Bus Operators’ Association of Tamil Nadu, private bus services were suspended in all districts, barring Chennai, Nilgiris and Kanyakumari. Inter-district, intra-district and private buses plying inside towns were part of the strike, officials said.

Protests by AIADMK workers and Jayalalithaa supporters continued with some of them conducting special prayers in temples for the speedy release of their leader.

AIADMK legislators and Chennai Mayor S Duraisamy wore black shirts and observed a fast at the memorial of party founder M G Ramachandran (MGR) at the Marina beach here.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Associations of Private Schools in Tamil Nadu announced that private schools across the state would remain closed on October 7.

Over 4,500 private schools would not function protesting the jailing of Jayalalithaa, while principals and administrators of these schools would hold a protest in front of the School Education Department in Chennai on that day, D C Elangovan, Secretary, Federation of Associations of Private Schools in Tamil Nadu, said in Salem. — PTI

SEBI to auction land, buildings of WB firm

Kolkata, October 5
Adopting a new strategy to collect funds for repayment to investors, market regulator SEBI will conduct an e-auction of land and buildings of a company that had garnered money through so-called 'chit fund' schemes.

The unauthorised money-collection schemes are widely known as 'chit funds' in West Bengal and other eastern and north-eastern states, although their operators are not registered as 'chit fund' companies in most cases.

In many such cases, regulators and government agencies such as SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) and SFIO (Serious Fraud Investigation Office) have found that these were 'ponzi' or illegal money-circulation schemes where new investors were given returns from funds of earlier investors.

This has been the case for Saradha group also, whose schemes were among the most high-profile and the SFIO recently submitted its final report in the case to the government. SEBI had passed an order against a Saradha entity last year.

In the latest case, SEBI has initiated the process for sale of assets of Tower Infotech Ltd, as per an order from Calcutta High Court, under which an e-auction would be conducted for sale of land and buildings of the company.

The bids have been invited by Sebi till October 27, while auction for the sale would take place on October 30, the regulator said in its tender notice.

The High Court has directed SEBI to sell certain assets of Tower Infotech and distribute the proceeds among duped depositors and debenture holders. This is probably the first instance of SEBI conducting an e-auction to liquidate assets of a deposit-mobilising company for refund to the investors.

In some other cases, SEBI has already ordered sale of shares held by certain companies that have found to be in default of payments as directed by the regulator.

Through enhanced powers, SEBI has been allowed to attach and liquidate the assets of defaulter entities, including in cases of illicit money schemes. SEBI has also been given power to act against companies running illicit money-pooling. PTI

Ponzi menace
In many such cases, regulators and government agencies such as SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) and SFIO (Serious Fraud Investigation Office) have found that these were ‘ponzi’ or illegal money-circulation schemes where new investors were given returns from funds of earlier investors.

TMC to protest CBI probe into Saradha scam
Subhrangshu Gupta
Tribune News Service

Kolkata, October 5
The TMC will stage a massive demonstration in protest against the CBI probe into the Saradha chit fund scam at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Later, the party will organise a sit-in demonstration in front of Parliament.

The decision was announced here today by TMC Yuba Congress president and MP Abhishek Banerjee. He alleged that the Modi government was trying to harass and victimise the TMC ministers, MPs, MLAs and others on false charges with the help of the CBI in order to gain political interests. However, they would resist their attempts politically and administratively.

Meanwhile, the CBI today sent intimation to artist Suvaprasanna for interrogation in connection with the selling of his TV channel, which had not obtained any official clearance, to Sudipta Sen allegedly at the instance of the CM, who has “friendly relations” with the artist.

BRIEFLY

Mob clashes with police, 9 hurt
Jalaun/Lucknow: Five policemen were among nine persons injured on Sunday when a mob clashed with the police over the recovery of the two bodies of minor sisters in Churkhi area of Jalaun. The state government has removed Jalaun's Superintendent of Police, Rakesh Shanker. — PTI