Sunday, March 25, 2012

Pakistani Taliban training Frenchmen: Officials

DERA ISMAIL KHAN (PAKISTAN): Pakistani intelligence officials say dozens of French Muslims have been training with the Taliban in northwest Pakistan.



The officials said on Saturday they were investigating whether Mohamed Merah, a Frenchman of Algerian descent suspected of killing seven people in southern France, had been part of this group.



Merah traveled to Pakistan in 2011 and said he trained with al-Qaida in Waziristan. He was killed in a gunfight with police Thursday in the French city of Toulouse.



The officials said 85 Frenchmen have been training with the Pakistani Taliban in the North Waziristan tribal area for the past three years. Most have dual nationality with France and North African countries.



The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
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Odisha hostage crisis: Maoists free one Italian tourist

BHUBANESWAR: Police on Sunday said the Maoists released one of the two Italians, Claudio Colangelo, who were kidnapped 11 days ago in Odisha.



Speaking to reporters after his release, 61-year-old Claudio said: \"They have finally released me today. Let\'s hope they release Paolo soon.\"



Earlier, chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday held a meeting of top state police and administrative officials.



The guerillas abducted Italians Bosusco Paolo, 54, and Claudio Colangelo, from a forested area on the border of state\'s Ganjam and Kandhamal district March 14.



On Saturday, the rebels kidnapped ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) legislator Jhina Hikaka in Koraput district.



The kidnapping of 37-year-old Hikaka took place even as the government was holding dialogue with the rebels through their mediators for the release of the Italians.



The government also promised that there would be no coercive action by the security forces as long as there is no violence from the Maoists.



The rebels have set 13 demands for the release of hostages including a ban on the visit of tourists to the tribal areas, halt to anti-Maoist operations, and release of several prisoners.


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Tax department won\'t act like policeman, Pranab Mukherjee assures industry

NEW DELHI: The government on Sunday said it has no vindictive intention in retrospectively amending tax laws and has no plans to re-open a large number of old cases, while assuring India Inc that the I-T department will not act like a \"policeman\".



Interacting with industry leaders here, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee maintained that there was no trust deficit between the government and industry and stressed that the Centre will make all efforts to push forward economic reforms despite constraints of \"limited mandate\".



\"I can assure the industry that there is no intention of opening plethora of the old cases on this plea or that plea because that is simply not permissible (under the laws),\" he said while replying to a question at CII meet here.


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Telecom links in all Indian villages by 2014: BSNL

AGARTALA: State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has undertaken an ambitious Rs 20,000 crore project to establish telecom links in all villages across India and to take e-governance to rural and far-flung areas in the next two years, a BSNL official said here Sunday.



\"The Rs 20,000 crore project for the creation of a \'National Optical Fibre Network\' (NOFN) for providing internet and other telecommunications connectivity to villages has been launched recently. It would be completed by the next two years,\" BSNL CMD R.K. Upadhyaya told reporters.



\"Once the NOFN was created, it would help in offering governance, banking and health and other basic services online up to the villages and rural areas,\" he said.



According to him, the tele-density in urban areas in India is almost 100 percent while in the rural areas, it is 37 percent.



\"After NOFN, the existing tele-density would be increased to a great extent in the rural areas,\" said Upadhyaya, who came here Saturday and held a series of meetings with Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and other senior officials.



The BSNL has also undertaken to improve the telecommunications connectivity in the northeastern region by upgrading the existing Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) network and hiring PGCIL (Power Grid Corporation of India Limited) and RailTel cable network, he said.



\"The BSNL has laid OFC from Kolkata to (Bangladesh capital) Dhaka and the network would be further extended up to northeastern states in near future via Bangladesh,\" he added.



Upadhyaya said that the BSNL has OFC network with some European countries, Nepal, Myanmar and Bhutan. \"Earlier the link was put in place with Pakistan too but now it is non-operational.\"



He said BSNL accounts to 80 percent of landline and 90 percent of broadband connections in the country, while around 30 percent of the nation\'s mobile connections are covered by BSNL.



During the past four years, the BSNL could not procure any GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) equipment, he said, adding that tenders have been issued recently for 15 million GSM line connections.
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Barack Obama says still time for diplomacy with Iran

SEOUL: US president Barack Obama said on Sunday there was still time to resolve the Iranian nuclear standoff with the West through diplomacy but that the window for such a solution was closing.



Obama reiterated his position on Iran after talks with Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan on the eve of a nuclear security summit in Seoul.



\"I believe there is a window of time to solve this diplomatically but that window is closing,\" Obama told reporters.



Tehran says its nuclear programme is purely peaceful, but Israel and Western nations believe it is moving towards a nuclear bomb that could change the regional balance of power.



Obama has pressed Israel to hold off on any attack on Iran\'s nuclear sites to give sanctions and diplomacy time to work. But he has said military action remains an option if all else fails.



Erdogan spoke to Obama of his planned visit to Iran before the end of the month and said he would also talk to Iranian leaders about the violence in Syria, an ally of Tehran, a senior US official said.



Iran and North Korea are not on the guest list or the agenda for the Seoul summit, but their nuclear standoffs are dominating talks on the sidelines of the conference that is ostensibly focused on preventing nuclear terrorism.



Obama has spearheaded international efforts to isolate Tehran, which include several rounds of sanctions, but it has remained defiant on its nuclear programme, despite showing an openness to possibly resuming long-suspended talks with world powers.
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We are unperturbed by Anna Hazare\'s protests, our Lokpal Bill is one of the best: Government

NEW DELHI: The UPA government is \"unperturbed\" by protests as its Lokpal Bill is \"one of the best\" and it was following all Parliamentary procedures, Union minister E Ahamed said today.



Asserting that Parliament\'s \"importance cannot be reduced\", the minister of state for human resource development (HRD), while replying to queries on Anna Hazare\'s token fast at Jantar Mantar today, said the UPA government \"is committed\" to checking corruption.



\"That\'s why we brought this bill, the Lokpal Bill is one of the best bills.\"



\"If you want to make a small issue a bigger issue, you can have it. But so far the UPA government is concerned, we are not perturbed ... Parliament is supreme ... We are always following Parliamentary procedures. Parliament\'s importance cannot be reduced,\" Ahamed told reporters here.



He, however, added, \"There may be some opinion about the provisions of the bill. Anybody may very well ventilate their sentiment. Anybody can move an amendment because it is a democracy.\"
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Kofi Annan\'s mission is Syria\'s last chance: Russia

MOSCOW: Russian president Dmitry Medvedev voiced strong support on Sunday for UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan\'s mission to end a year of violence in Syria, saying it could be the last chance to avert an even bloodier civil war.



\"This may be the last chance for Syria to avoid a long-lasting and bloody civil war. Therefore we will offer you our full support at any level,\" Medvedev told Annan at a meeting at a Moscow airport.



Annan said that \"Syria has an opportunity today to work with me and this mediation process to put an end to the conflict, to the fighting, allow access to those in need of humanitarian assistance as well as embark on a political process\" that would lead to a peaceful settlement.



Russia, which accuses other nations of encouraging opponents of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, urged UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan to work hard with the government and opposition to seek peace, the foreign ministry said on Sunday.



In a meeting with Annan, foreign minister Sergei Lavrov \"underscored the need to end violence from all sides and establish a broad Syrian political dialogue ... He called on the special envoy to work actively toward that aim with both the authorities and the opposition,\" a statement said.



Lavrov also said that to support Anna\'s mission, nations must refrain from interfering in Syria affairs or taking sides in the confrontation between the government and opponents.
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Don\'t want to compare between 800 wickets and 100 tons: Sachin Tendulkar

MUMBAI: Sachin Tendulkar refused to compare his stupendous feat of scoring 100 international centuries with other milestones in the game like that of Muttiah Muralitharan\'s 800 Test wickets for Sri Lanka.



\"I don\'t like comparisons. I think getting to 800 wickets is a great thing, absolutely fabulous,\" said the senior batsman in a media interaction on Sunday.



\"All the other players who have done well and have been successful at international level, they have made huge sacrifices. There has been lot of discipline, commitment and dedication in their life to serve the nation. I respect all of them .



\"I also respect the guys who have not been successful because to play for your nation, you still have to go through the rigours and without that it doesn\'t happen. I don\'t like to compare and I respect every individual, who has achieved something.\"



Asked whether anyone else can break his record, Tendulkar said he wanted an Indian to do so.



\"About breaking the record of 100 hundreds, I don\'t know. All the records are meant to be broken. If somebody breaks it, then he must be an Indian.\"



When told he had not said anything categorical about his retirement plans, Tendulkar retorted, \"I have answered. May be you guys have not understood properly. I have always said that when I decide to retire I will let you know. Where is the question of not answering?\"
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Now, a tablet that\'s also a mini lab for doctors

NEW DELHI: Imagine a cutting edge software - a tablet computer and an Android phone rolled into one - that works as a diagnostic tool for multiple activities like conduct ECG, measure heart rate, test quality of water and also take body temperature.



Swasthya Slate ( Health Tablet) - a first-of-its-kind diagnostic tool - created by a US-returned Indian biomedical engineer Kanav Kahol will not only perform all these tasks but will also test blood pressure and blood sugar on the spot.



Kahol, who has worked with Nobel laureate Dr Lee Hartwell at the University of Arizona\'s Biodesign Institute on creating \"persuasive technology,\" said the Slate will now help Auxillary Nurse Midwives (ANMs) and Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) working in far-flung villages to diagnose diseases on the spot.



Swasthya Slate is likely to be ready for operation in next three months.



Kahol, who is working for the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), said, \"Earlier, we had estimated it would cost $1.8 million, and take about three years to create. However, we completed it in three months at a cost of only $11,000.\"



The software verification and validation has shown that \"our readings on the software are 99.94% accurate. We can store the information on a local file which can be uploaded onto a server. A demographic system has also been developed to store the patient\'s detail.\"



\"At present, when ANMs or ASHAs visit villages, they have to ask people to the primary health centres to get tested. Hence, they wanted something that enabled them to make decisions and deliver better quality care on the spot. The Slate will allow them to do so. Empowering them with Swasthya Slate, the on-the-spot recommendation system and guidance by physicians through the phone/videoconferencing will allow them to monitor population health and also identify high-risk cases that need immediate care,\" said Kanav, who quit as professor of biomedical engineering and informatics at the University of Arizona to work in India.



The device can capture ECG data at 1,000 Hz, providing with enough information to make clinical judgements.



\"Our software and hardware prototype cost is only Rs 7,000, excluding the cost of the Android device. In high volumes, the device cost will dip greatly,\" he added.



Kahol said ANMs and ASHAs would have no problem in operating the user-friendly device.



Over the next three months, he will create an interface for blood pressure and blood sugar machines to the device, and also incorporate diabetes and cardiovascular screening software. These features will be in addition to maternal and child care software.



\"We will also be implementing software on the tablet that allows on-the-spot recommendations for care delivery. This software known as decision support system allows the user to input certain parameters and readings from the Swasthya Slate diagnostic equipment to generate recommendations for treatment of the patients under close supervision by physicians,\" he added.


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Explain Intelligence Bureau\'s legality, HC tells Centre

CHENNAI: Responding to a PIL filed by a retired Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer pointing at the complete absence of constitutional or statutory sanction for the agency, the Karnataka high court last week sought an explanation from the Centre, giving it time until March 30 to issue an executive order justifying IB\'s existence.



The IB was formed on December 23, 1887, by the then British secretary of state as a sub-sect of the Central Special Branch. \"It has remained like a ghost, without a statute, all these 125 years,\" said the PIL filed by Mysore-based R N Kulkarni, who joined the IB in 1963 and retired in 1998 as its joint assistant director.



Kulkarni further told the court that despite being a vital arm of national intelligence and security, all that the IB has to explain for its evolution over the past 125 years is the British order issued in 1887. Neither the Indian Independence nor the adoption of a Constitution nor even regulatory statutes for Central police organizations like the CRPF and CISF ever accorded any legal status to the IB, which exists in a constitutional vacuum.



In its response, the Centre said the IB is a civilian organization which does not enjoy police powers. It also admitted that on May 21, 2001, a group of ministers had acknowledged that IB did not have a formal charter, although an attempt was made to define its functioning.



Taking note of the absence of a legislation to regulate the IB, the court asked the Centre to issue an executive order defining the powers, functions and duties of IB officers immediately. Otherwise, the bench headed by the chief justice cautioned, that the court would be constrained to constitute a committee to go into the issue and submit a report.



\"How can the IB, established under an administrative order without any constitutional or statutory identity even after the commencement of the Constitution in 1950, be permitted to function as an apex national security apparatus,\" questioned Kulkarni\'s PIL. This extra-constitutional status infringes upon the rights of citizens as well as those serving in the IB, the PIL added.



The closest that the IB ever came to have a rule was in 1985 when Parliament enacted the Intelligence Organizations (Restriction of Rights) But Parliament failed to legislate for IB\'s establishment, regulation, discipline, control or operations, the PIL said.




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TMC rebels attack Bengal tourism minister\'s car

HARIPAL (HOOGHLY): State tourism minister Rachpal Singh\'s car was attacked and damaged at Kinkarbati Krishi Vidyalaya ground, allegedly by Trinamool Congress supporters.



Singh had a narrow escape after police intervened and escorted the minister to safety. The incident left 12 Trinamool Congress supporters injured. Eight of them had to be hospitalized later.



The incident took place at a Trinamool Panchayati Raj Sammelan. Becharam Manna, Haripal MLA and Tapan Dasgupta, Trinamool\'s Hooghly president and MLA, were on the dais when a group of over 1000 party workers with Trinamool badges and flags forced their way in to the meeting with slogans that genuine delegates were left out of the meet. The protesters were reportedly led by a local Trinamool leader Muzaffar Ali and their target was the meeting\'s convener Safiul Islam. This led to sporadic clashes.



Rachpal\'s convoy arrived there around the same time and got stuck in the melee. The protesters also trained guns at him and alleged that people like him and others have been made ministers and true Trinamool workers were left out. The mob attacked the car with stones and lathis and smashed its rear windshield. Later police reached the spot and escorted the minister to safety. Infighting ripples were also felt later in the evening, when some Trinamool activists reportedly damaged their own party offices.



\"It is difficult to find the culprits since there were many people. Timely intervention from the police averted major consequences. Many people have joined Trinamool these days and the clashes are fallout of this. The party will deal with it,\" Singh said. According to Dasgupta, some CPM men in touch with TMC people are behind this. \"Indiscipline in the ranks will not be tolerated and action will be taken,\" he said.



Meanwhile, minister Partha Chatterjee said his party has no links to Muzaffar and his men.



Among 12 injured, eight were admitted to the Haripal Rural Health Centre. Hooghly SP Tanmoy Roychowdhury said, \"Due to the presence of a large number of people there were reports of clashes which, though, didn\'t last long.\" Locals refused to speak on the matter.



Most of the Kinkarbati locals claimed that they had rushed to their homes when the trouble broke out.



Only a day before, another clash - due to reported internal feud - in Bhadreswar left four Trinamool workers injured. The incident took place after a Trinamool councillor at Bhadreswar Municipality M P Singh moved a no-confidence motion against municipality chairman and a member of his own party Deepak Chakraborty. Chakraborty\'s supporters attacked Singh\'s men after the latter claimed that they had won the no-confidence vote. Later, Hooghly district magistrate Sripriya Rangarajan ordered that Chakraborty would continue as the municipality chairman.


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Small is beautiful: Tiny nations woo Indians

MUMBAI: They may not be on a regular traveller\'s map. Many of them may not be even known as tourist destinations. But small countries, even cities, are now going all out to attract Indian tourists. So, while the UK, USA and big European nations continue to corner a hefty share of tourists from India, countries like Croatia, Fiji, Trinidad & Tobago and Uzbekistan are using regular promotions and campaigns to catch the desi traveller\'s eye.



Travel experts say that these little-known places are gradually being explored by those who have already been to major holiday destinations and are now looking for new locales. Last week, Japan held a three-day open air campaign at a local mall to showcase the country for travellers and tour operators. The country, primarily a business destination for Indians, is now trying to get more Indians tourists. All Nippon, a Japanese carrier, is offering a return ticket for almost half the usual rate. Far-flung places like Peru, Argentina, Slovenia and Jordan have also been holding regular promotions in the past three years. Iraqi Airways, which had stopped operating from Mumbai two decades ago, will resume direct flights from the city in October.



\"These places are lesser-known and do not often come to a regular tourist\'s mind. However, they are also very exotic retreats and although expensive, make for good destinations for the more adventurous or experimental traveller,\" said Rajesh Rateria, managing director, Cirrus Travels. Also, Indians are warming up to offbeat destinations. While Croatia, a central European country, started promoting tourism last year, Oman, Jordan and Trinidad & Tobago have started hard selling themselves recently.



Travel industry officials said that these countries have not yet set up tourism boards in India due to the relatively light demand. \"However, many destination management companies from these places approach travel agents with presentations to promote them,\" said Pradip Lulla, director, Cupid Travels. Industry observers point out that many cities and resorts too do individual promotions for travellers.



\"In a few years, we expect a rise in the number of Indians travelling to more unexplored places. New destinations are making themselves visible. We can expect more airlines connecting these places for Indians once more people start flying,\" said a Fort-based travel agent.


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UP housing board to raise property rates

LUCKNOW: New houses and plots offered by the UP Housing and Development Board (UPHDB) in Ghaziabad and Loni may cost nearly 20% more with the state government agency planning to jack up prices in the new financial year.



An internal committee of the board has recommended a raise of 5%-25% in the land cost in various schemes across Uttar Pradesh. This will lead to an increase of 10%-16% in case of a majority of housing board properties. But for areas around Delhi, the rise could be more, sources said.



A proposal for increase is ready and likely to be placed before the housing commissioner next week. Housing Board secretary J B Singh said it was a preliminary recommendation which was yet to get the government\'s final nod.



\"The market prices have seen an upward trend in recent times. This called for a technical examination of the properties owned by the board,\" said a senior housing board official.



The move comes a year after the last hike of 15%-16%. Private developers have jacked up rates manifold in this period. In Ghaziabad and Noida, residential property prices have nearly doubled in the last 12-18 months. The UP Housing Board had earlier sold properties in Vasundhara and Indirapuram. Siddharth Vihar in Loni is coming up now.



Plots and the semi-finished houses directly offered by the board have already been sold out. So, the effect would largely be seen on apartments which are constructed and sold by private builders under the scheme.



In Lucknow, the prices of plots and houses in the operational housing projects like Vrindavan housing scheme on Rae Bareli Road will escalate between 10% and 16%, JB Singh said.



The prices of apartments in UPHDB schemes range between Rs 2,000 and Rs 2,500 per sq/ft. It is this segment which would see its prices spiraling when the hiked rates come into effect. Significantly, it was this segment alone which was hit by farmers stir which demanded higher compensation for their land.


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Anna Hazare storms Delhi, warns of August stir

NEW DELHI: Pushing aside the December debacle activist Anna Hazare returned in full force to Jantar Mantar on Sunday, setting an August deadline for the government to file cases against its 14 \"corrupt\'\' Cabinet ministers. Energized by the surging crowd at his day-long fast, Team Anna also demanded investigation and trial against over 1,300 elected representatives (MPs and MLAs) who are facing criminal charges to be completed within the next six months.



Hazare, who had been battling ill health for over two months, looked sharp and combined the attack against politicians of all hues, with his earthy wit that was met with much gusto and applause.



\"FIRs must be registered against the corrupt (Union) ministers by August or there will be \'jail bharo\' agitation across the country. We have to be ready for this. A date will be announced later. I will travel across the country after the session ends on May 15 and decide a date,\" Hazare said.



The floundering Lokpal agitation was accompanied by a pincer attack on politicians irrespective of their ideology and set the agenda for a numerically weak government. Significantly, the activists also appeared to overlook reservations against Baba Ramdev\'s alleged Hindutva links to announce unconditional support for his black money campaign realizing that their appeal to the middle-class could be strengthened with the mass appeal that Ramdev commanded over north India.



In their provocative speeches Team Anna members named nearly 25 politicians alleging that there were complaints of corruption against them and strong anti-corruption laws or protection could not be expected from such polity. Hazare also appeared to be sensitive to the charge that the group had ``insulted\'\' Parliament taking the opportunity to emphasis that it was the political representatives with dubious antecedents who had defamed the House.



Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal, who is already battling three privilege notices for calling MPs ``murderers, rapists\'\' appeared defiant listing out 14 ``corrupt\'\' cabinet ministers. He argued that allegations against these ministers had been raised in newspapers and TV expose and he had no direct evidence of the wrong-doing but the allegations should be investigated nonetheless.



Among those named included P Chidambaram, Ajit Singh, Farooz Abdullah, G K Vasan, Kamal Nath, Kapil Sibal, Sharad Pawar, Sriprakash Jaiswal, Sushil Kumar Shinde, Vilasrao Deshmukh, M K Alagiri, Virbhadra Singh, S M Krishna and Praful Patel. Naming MPs and CMs from across the political spectrum Kejriwal said that there were allegations of corruption against B S Yeddyuarappa, J Jayalalithaa, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayawati. TOI does not subscribe to these charges.



Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi attacked Team Anna for leveling baseless charges and said they were welcome to file cases if they had any proof.



Hazare, whose last hunger strike in Mumbai in end-December flopped due to a low turn-out, also put the government on notice on Lokpal issue stressing that the agitation was by no means over. \"Bring Jan Lokpal or go out of power in 2014 general elections,\" Hazare said. \"We will show what is the power of Jan Lokpal Bill. I am a fakir (saint). I will show them how much strength a \'fakir\' like me has,\" he said.



Team Anna\'s new game plan was revealed through a series of speeches by Hazare, Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi and Shanti Bhushan towards the end of the fast.



Bedi then talked about \"getting ready for the fight\" during Delhi polls next year followed by Bhushan who said the government fears passing of a strong Lokpal Bill as they don\'t want to have their own ministers in jail.



Before starting his fast, Hazare, said many people have sacrificed their lives while fighting corruption and the government has not conducted any probe despite some incidents which happened three years ago. ``Their (whistleblowers\') mothers, their children, their fathers, their wives are crying for justice. But this government has gone dumb and deaf. It is not listening to the cries of people. This government neither has any intention nor does it have any political will to bring a strong Lokpal Bill. We will not relent. We will have to keep struggling. I am confident that one day they will have to bring the Jan Lokpal Bill,\" said Hazare.



Asking his supporters to keep up the pressure on the government, he said people of the country have woken up and they will not allow corrupt politicians to \"loot\" the resources anymore.



\"We will have to bring real democracy in the country by ensuring rights of the common people who are supreme and send their representatives to Parliament and state legislatures,\" he said.



Hazare said from now onwards his supporters will work in cooperation with Baba Ramdev\'s movement against black money to wipe out corruption in the country.
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Pak\'s deputy attorney gen works off Taliban\'s sins at Delhi gurdwaras

NEW DELHI: A man in a maroon kurta sits hunched on the floor on Sunday afternoon, polishing the shoes of devotees at a room in Delhi\'s Gurdwara Rakabganj. It\'s a common sight in gurdwaras, except that this man is Pakistan\'s deputy attorney general, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, who had requested he be allowed to perform seva ( community service) at the shrine.



Khan, 62, is an eminent lawyer and a devout Muslim from Pakistan\'s Peshawar province. He is in Delhi for a judicial conference. \"I have been more keen on visiting various places of worship here to promote harmony between India and Pakistan,\" says Khan.



Khan\'s tryst with temples and gurdwaras began in 2010 to \"heal the wounds of minorities in Pakistan by becoming their sevadar (performer of service)\". For him, it was a \"penance\" for crimes committed by the Taliban.



In February that year, the Taliban had kidnapped three Sikhs from Peshawar and demanded a $235,000 ransom. Pakistan army rescued two of them, but the third, Jaspal Singh, was beheaded by the captors. After the killing, Khan performed service at a gurdwara in Peshawar.



\"I seek harmony among all religions,\" says Khan, citing Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage.



\"I am a Muslim, not a terrorist; I am a Khan, not a terrorist; I am from Pakistan, but not a terrorist.\" This is Pakistani deputy attorney general Muhammad Khurshid Khan\'s humble submission as he visits gurdwaras across New Delhi and performs seva (community service).



The Taliban, he says, has plundered Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage. \"But I want to tell the world it\'s unfair to tarnish a whole community for the sins of a few,\" says the Pakhtoon who ran for Pakistan\'s National Assembly twice.



In Delhi for a conference, Khan, accompanied by Surinder Singh, a Delhi based businessman whose father was a comrade of Subhas Chandra Bose, has polished shoes at Gurdwara Sisganj and visited Birla Temple and Hanuman Mandir.



Khan told TOI that he turned to other faiths after the Taliban beheaded a Sikh, Jaspal Singh, in Peshawar in February 2010. \"When I visited the house of Jaspal, I was filled with remorse.\" The killing weighed on his conscience. He was perturbed that violence in the name of Islam brought a bad name not only to Muslims and Pakistan but also to his people, the Pakhtoons.



The next day, he went to Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh in Peshawar and sat on the steps. He could hear the chants wafting out of the shrine. \"I felt peace,\" he says.



The lawyer started reading about Guru Nanak and approached a member of the gurdwara management committee to allow him the opportunity for seva. After discussions, the gurdwara management committee allowed to perform seva.



\"For two months, I went to the gurdwara daily before the maghrib azaan (call to prayer at sunset) and polished shoes of devotees. \"Sevadari is ibaadat (worship),\" he says.



In Delhi, Khan also went to Jantar Mantar in the hope of meeting Anna. He sent his visiting card and waited for close to an hour but could not meet Anna. But he left the place \"charmed\". \"It is amazing. This is democracy,\" he said.



On his way back to Pakistan, he will visit the Golden Temple at Amritsar for the \'Jora Ghar Seva (polishing shoes of devotees). He had written to PM Manmohan Singh last year to allow him a chance to perform seva at Amritsar. \"I am yet to get a reply,\" he said.



He has performed similar service at Hindu temples and joined church prayers every Sunday in Pakistan. \"I live in a rigid society. But the ulema have never criticized me. The Hadees says anything good must be spread all around,\" said Khan. His gesture has been appreciated by Muslims and minorities in Pakistan.

NEW DELHI: A man in a maroon kurta sits hunched on the floor on Sunday afternoon, polishing the shoes of devotees at a room in Delhi\'s Gurdwara Rakabganj. It\'s a common sight in gurdwaras, except that this man is Pakistan\'s deputy attorney general, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, who had requested he be allowed to perform seva ( community service) at the shrine.



Khan, 62, is an eminent lawyer and a devout Muslim from Pakistan\'s Peshawar province. He is in Delhi for a judicial conference. \"I have been more keen on visiting various places of worship here to promote harmony between India and Pakistan,\" says Khan.



Khan\'s tryst with temples and gurdwaras began in 2010 to \"heal the wounds of minorities in Pakistan by becoming their sevadar (performer of service)\". For him, it was a \"penance\" for crimes committed by the Taliban.



In February that year, the Taliban had kidnapped three Sikhs from Peshawar and demanded a $235,000 ransom. Pakistan army rescued two of them, but the third, Jaspal Singh, was beheaded by the captors. After the killing, Khan performed service at a gurdwara in Peshawar.



\"I seek harmony among all religions,\" says Khan, citing Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage.



\"I am a Muslim, not a terrorist; I am a Khan, not a terrorist; I am from Pakistan, but not a terrorist.\" This is Pakistani deputy attorney general Muhammad Khurshid Khan\'s humble submission as he visits gurdwaras across New Delhi and performs seva (community service).



The Taliban, he says, has plundered Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage. \"But I want to tell the world it\'s unfair to tarnish a whole community for the sins of a few,\" says the Pakhtoon who ran for Pakistan\'s National Assembly twice.



In Delhi for a conference, Khan, accompanied by Surinder Singh, a Delhi based businessman whose father was a comrade of Subhas Chandra Bose, has polished shoes at Gurdwara Sisganj and visited Birla Temple and Hanuman Mandir.



Khan told TOI that he turned to other faiths after the Taliban beheaded a Sikh, Jaspal Singh, in Peshawar in February 2010. \"When I visited the house of Jaspal, I was filled with remorse.\" The killing weighed on his conscience. He was perturbed that violence in the name of Islam brought a bad name not only to Muslims and Pakistan but also to his people, the Pakhtoons.



The next day, he went to Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh in Peshawar and sat on the steps. He could hear the chants wafting out of the shrine. \"I felt peace,\" he says.



The lawyer started reading about Guru Nanak and approached a member of the gurdwara management committee to allow him the opportunity for seva. After discussions, the gurdwara management committee allowed to perform seva.



\"For two months, I went to the gurdwara daily before the maghrib azaan (call to prayer at sunset) and polished shoes of devotees. \"Sevadari is ibaadat (worship),\" he says.



In Delhi, Khan also went to Jantar Mantar in the hope of meeting Anna. He sent his visiting card and waited for close to an hour but could not meet Anna. But he left the place \"charmed\". \"It is amazing. This is democracy,\" he said.



On his way back to Pakistan, he will visit the Golden Temple at Amritsar for the \'Jora Ghar Seva (polishing shoes of devotees). He had written to PM Manmohan Singh last year to allow him a chance to perform seva at Amritsar. \"I am yet to get a reply,\" he said.



He has performed similar service at Hindu temples and joined church prayers every Sunday in Pakistan. \"I live in a rigid society. But the ulema have never criticized me. The Hadees says anything good must be spread all around,\" said Khan. His gesture has been appreciated by Muslims and minorities in Pakistan.

NEW DELHI: A man in a maroon kurta sits hunched on the floor on Sunday afternoon, polishing the shoes of devotees at a room in Delhi\'s Gurdwara Rakabganj. It\'s a common sight in gurdwaras, except that this man is Pakistan\'s deputy attorney general, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, who had requested he be allowed to perform seva ( community service) at the shrine.



Khan, 62, is an eminent lawyer and a devout Muslim from Pakistan\'s Peshawar province. He is in Delhi for a judicial conference. \"I have been more keen on visiting various places of worship here to promote harmony between India and Pakistan,\" says Khan.



Khan\'s tryst with temples and gurdwaras began in 2010 to \"heal the wounds of minorities in Pakistan by becoming their sevadar (performer of service)\". For him, it was a \"penance\" for crimes committed by the Taliban.



In February that year, the Taliban had kidnapped three Sikhs from Peshawar and demanded a $235,000 ransom. Pakistan army rescued two of them, but the third, Jaspal Singh, was beheaded by the captors. After the killing, Khan performed service at a gurdwara in Peshawar.



\"I seek harmony among all religions,\" says Khan, citing Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage.



\"I am a Muslim, not a terrorist; I am a Khan, not a terrorist; I am from Pakistan, but not a terrorist.\" This is Pakistani deputy attorney general Muhammad Khurshid Khan\'s humble submission as he visits gurdwaras across New Delhi and performs seva (community service).



The Taliban, he says, has plundered Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage. \"But I want to tell the world it\'s unfair to tarnish a whole community for the sins of a few,\" says the Pakhtoon who ran for Pakistan\'s National Assembly twice.



In Delhi for a conference, Khan, accompanied by Surinder Singh, a Delhi based businessman whose father was a comrade of Subhas Chandra Bose, has polished shoes at Gurdwara Sisganj and visited Birla Temple and Hanuman Mandir.



Khan told TOI that he turned to other faiths after the Taliban beheaded a Sikh, Jaspal Singh, in Peshawar in February 2010. \"When I visited the house of Jaspal, I was filled with remorse.\" The killing weighed on his conscience. He was perturbed that violence in the name of Islam brought a bad name not only to Muslims and Pakistan but also to his people, the Pakhtoons.



The next day, he went to Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh in Peshawar and sat on the steps. He could hear the chants wafting out of the shrine. \"I felt peace,\" he says.



The lawyer started reading about Guru Nanak and approached a member of the gurdwara management committee to allow him the opportunity for seva. After discussions, the gurdwara management committee allowed to perform seva.



\"For two months, I went to the gurdwara daily before the maghrib azaan (call to prayer at sunset) and polished shoes of devotees. \"Sevadari is ibaadat (worship),\" he says.



In Delhi, Khan also went to Jantar Mantar in the hope of meeting Anna. He sent his visiting card and waited for close to an hour but could not meet Anna. But he left the place \"charmed\". \"It is amazing. This is democracy,\" he said.



On his way back to Pakistan, he will visit the Golden Temple at Amritsar for the \'Jora Ghar Seva (polishing shoes of devotees). He had written to PM Manmohan Singh last year to allow him a chance to perform seva at Amritsar. \"I am yet to get a reply,\" he said.



He has performed similar service at Hindu temples and joined church prayers every Sunday in Pakistan. \"I live in a rigid society. But the ulema have never criticized me. The Hadees says anything good must be spread all around,\" said Khan. His gesture has been appreciated by Muslims and minorities in Pakistan.

NEW DELHI: A man in a maroon kurta sits hunched on the floor on Sunday afternoon, polishing the shoes of devotees at a room in Delhi\'s Gurdwara Rakabganj. It\'s a common sight in gurdwaras, except that this man is Pakistan\'s deputy attorney general, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, who had requested he be allowed to perform seva ( community service) at the shrine.



Khan, 62, is an eminent lawyer and a devout Muslim from Pakistan\'s Peshawar province. He is in Delhi for a judicial conference. \"I have been more keen on visiting various places of worship here to promote harmony between India and Pakistan,\" says Khan.



Khan\'s tryst with temples and gurdwaras began in 2010 to \"heal the wounds of minorities in Pakistan by becoming their sevadar (performer of service)\". For him, it was a \"penance\" for crimes committed by the Taliban.



In February that year, the Taliban had kidnapped three Sikhs from Peshawar and demanded a $235,000 ransom. Pakistan army rescued two of them, but the third, Jaspal Singh, was beheaded by the captors. After the killing, Khan performed service at a gurdwara in Peshawar.



\"I seek harmony among all religions,\" says Khan, citing Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage.



\"I am a Muslim, not a terrorist; I am a Khan, not a terrorist; I am from Pakistan, but not a terrorist.\" This is Pakistani deputy attorney general Muhammad Khurshid Khan\'s humble submission as he visits gurdwaras across New Delhi and performs seva (community service).



The Taliban, he says, has plundered Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage. \"But I want to tell the world it\'s unfair to tarnish a whole community for the sins of a few,\" says the Pakhtoon who ran for Pakistan\'s National Assembly twice.



In Delhi for a conference, Khan, accompanied by Surinder Singh, a Delhi based businessman whose father was a comrade of Subhas Chandra Bose, has polished shoes at Gurdwara Sisganj and visited Birla Temple and Hanuman Mandir.



Khan told TOI that he turned to other faiths after the Taliban beheaded a Sikh, Jaspal Singh, in Peshawar in February 2010. \"When I visited the house of Jaspal, I was filled with remorse.\" The killing weighed on his conscience. He was perturbed that violence in the name of Islam brought a bad name not only to Muslims and Pakistan but also to his people, the Pakhtoons.



The next day, he went to Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh in Peshawar and sat on the steps. He could hear the chants wafting out of the shrine. \"I felt peace,\" he says.



The lawyer started reading about Guru Nanak and approached a member of the gurdwara management committee to allow him the opportunity for seva. After discussions, the gurdwara management committee allowed to perform seva.



\"For two months, I went to the gurdwara daily before the maghrib azaan (call to prayer at sunset) and polished shoes of devotees. \"Sevadari is ibaadat (worship),\" he says.



In Delhi, Khan also went to Jantar Mantar in the hope of meeting Anna. He sent his visiting card and waited for close to an hour but could not meet Anna. But he left the place \"charmed\". \"It is amazing. This is democracy,\" he said.



On his way back to Pakistan, he will visit the Golden Temple at Amritsar for the \'Jora Ghar Seva (polishing shoes of devotees). He had written to PM Manmohan Singh last year to allow him a chance to perform seva at Amritsar. \"I am yet to get a reply,\" he said.



He has performed similar service at Hindu temples and joined church prayers every Sunday in Pakistan. \"I live in a rigid society. But the ulema have never criticized me. The Hadees says anything good must be spread all around,\" said Khan. His gesture has been appreciated by Muslims and minorities in Pakistan.

NEW DELHI: A man in a maroon kurta sits hunched on the floor on Sunday afternoon, polishing the shoes of devotees at a room in Delhi\'s Gurdwara Rakabganj. It\'s a common sight in gurdwaras, except that this man is Pakistan\'s deputy attorney general, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, who had requested he be allowed to perform seva ( community service) at the shrine.



Khan, 62, is an eminent lawyer and a devout Muslim from Pakistan\'s Peshawar province. He is in Delhi for a judicial conference. \"I have been more keen on visiting various places of worship here to promote harmony between India and Pakistan,\" says Khan.



Khan\'s tryst with temples and gurdwaras began in 2010 to \"heal the wounds of minorities in Pakistan by becoming their sevadar (performer of service)\". For him, it was a \"penance\" for crimes committed by the Taliban.



In February that year, the Taliban had kidnapped three Sikhs from Peshawar and demanded a $235,000 ransom. Pakistan army rescued two of them, but the third, Jaspal Singh, was beheaded by the captors. After the killing, Khan performed service at a gurdwara in Peshawar.



\"I seek harmony among all religions,\" says Khan, citing Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage.



\"I am a Muslim, not a terrorist; I am a Khan, not a terrorist; I am from Pakistan, but not a terrorist.\" This is Pakistani deputy attorney general Muhammad Khurshid Khan\'s humble submission as he visits gurdwaras across New Delhi and performs seva (community service).



The Taliban, he says, has plundered Pakistan\'s pluralistic heritage. \"But I want to tell the world it\'s unfair to tarnish a whole community for the sins of a few,\" says the Pakhtoon who ran for Pakistan\'s National Assembly twice.



In Delhi for a conference, Khan, accompanied by Surinder Singh, a Delhi based businessman whose father was a comrade of Subhas Chandra Bose, has polished shoes at Gurdwara Sisganj and visited Birla Temple and Hanuman Mandir.



Khan told TOI that he turned to other faiths after the Taliban beheaded a Sikh, Jaspal Singh, in Peshawar in February 2010. \"When I visited the house of Jaspal, I was filled with remorse.\" The killing weighed on his conscience. He was perturbed that violence in the name of Islam brought a bad name not only to Muslims and Pakistan but also to his people, the Pakhtoons.



The next day, he went to Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh in Peshawar and sat on the steps. He could hear the chants wafting out of the shrine. \"I felt peace,\" he says.



The lawyer started reading about Guru Nanak and approached a member of the gurdwara management committee to allow him the opportunity for seva. After discussions, the gurdwara management committee allowed to perform seva.



\"For two months, I went to the gurdwara daily before the maghrib azaan (call to prayer at sunset) and polished shoes of devotees. \"Sevadari is ibaadat (worship),\" he says.



In Delhi, Khan also went to Jantar Mantar in the hope of meeting Anna. He sent his visiting card and waited for close to an hour but could not meet Anna. But he left the place \"charmed\". \"It is amazing. This is democracy,\" he said.



On his way back to Pakistan, he will visit the Golden Temple at Amritsar for the \'Jora Ghar Seva (polishing shoes of devotees). He had written to PM Manmohan Singh last year to allow him a chance to perform seva at Amritsar. \"I am yet to get a reply,\" he said.



He has performed similar service at Hindu temples and joined church prayers every Sunday in Pakistan. \"I live in a rigid society. But the ulema have never criticized me. The Hadees says anything good must be spread all around,\" said Khan. His gesture has been appreciated by Muslims and minorities in Pakistan.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

20 fake passports helped Dawood flee country

MUMBAI: The simplicity with which fake passports can be acquired is cited as one of the reasons for gangsters\' ability to slink across borders and elude the police.



According to Indian agencies, Dawood Ibrahim has at least 20 fake passports, 8 of which were issued in Mumbai, Chhota Rajan has 8, and Chhota Shakeel 6. Besides them, most senior D-Company members - including Tiger Memon, Ayub Memon, Ali Moosa and Pathan Izaz - have bogus Indian and Pakistani passports. Before they ended in police\'s dragnet, cops say, Abu Salem had 12 counterfeit passports, Santosh Shetty had 4 and Bunty Pandey 6.



\"The figures may not be definitive, but there is no denying that gangsters hold several fake passport that allow them to elude the authorities,\" said additional director general of police (Maharashtra ATS) Rakesh Maria. \"In cases of Salem and Shetty, we are certain of the number of fake passports they had.\"



Police officers explain that gangsters adopt different ways to acquire bogus passports, primary among which is a method called \'mundi cut\'. In this method, the original photograph is cut out of a stolen passport and replaced with the don\'s. Another favourite modus operandi is to get a genuine passport using fake documents. This method too is considered uncomplicated since all that is required is to grease a few officials\' palms and pay off a few agents.



Gangster Salem, police say, got three passports from India while he was at large in the Middle East and Europe. The documents were in the name of Akil Ahmed Azmi from Lucknow, Danish Baig from Bhopal and Ramin Malik from Hyderabad. His girlfriend Monica Bedi, who was extradited from Portugal along with the don, too had fake passports.



\"Criminals pay hefty sums to travel agents who bribe officials and get the verification procedure ignored. Take the Kandahar hijack case, where terrorists got forged passports or the 13/7 Mumbai terror plotters,\" Maria said.



Joint commissioner of police (crime) Himanshu Roy said there are highly sophisticated machines that can duplicate an Indian passport. \"Apart from Mumbai, fudging of passports and visas is common in Hyderabad, West Bengal, Karnataka,\" he said. Once criminals fly out of India on a fake passport, it is difficult to catch them since \"airport officials in foreign countries can track them only if an alert has been sounded by Indian officials\".




News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Maoists Orissa double kidnap seen as tactical blunder

NEW DELHI: The killing of top Maoist leader Kishenji and arrest of top cadres seems to have weakened the extremist outfit\'s central leadership, taking a toll on the group\'s operational planning with the Orissa double kidnap seen as a major tactical blunder.



The kidnap of BJD tribal MLA Jhina Hikaka at a time when Maoists were already holding two Italians captive might have diminished Odisha area chief Sabyasachi Panda\'s negotiating position forcing him to release one of the Italians on Sunday.



The MLA\'s abduction and killing of a police official compromised Panda who had to condemn the acts as a violation of the ceasefire agreed to by the state CPI ML committee. His options were further constrained by negotiators B D Sharma and Dandapani Mohanty calling off their efforts.



The conflicting actions of Kandhamal-based cadres, who abducted the Italians, and the Daya group - suspected to be behind the kidnap of Hikaka - is seen as evidence of slackening of the high command\'s authority.



Official sources said Kishenji\'s death and arrest of leaders like Kobad Gandhy has created a vacuum at the top and led to loss of control over area committees, with factional bosses working to their own agendas. Over the past year, several key state level leaders have been apprehended in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Bihar.



Local acts of intimidation at this time of the year are linked to efforts to discourage people from accessing Odisha\'s deeply forested areas where ultras are involved in collection of ganja, a money-spinner for the extremists. But the abduction of Hikaka seems to have been an overkill.



Political sources said the kidnap of Hikaka, a well-regarded tribal leader, has added to the pressure on Panda who is very keen to not only ensure release of his wife Subhashree from jail, but to also gain a safe passage for himself as security forces are believed to be snapping at his heels.



\"Leaders like Hikaka are working to bring tribals into the mainstream. The soft approach has worked and now Maoist-affected districts are down to three from 22 till some time ago,\" said BJD MP Bhartruhari Mahtab.



The abduction of Hikaka is seen to be the work of Maoists from Andhra Pradesh. The faction seems to have overplayed its hand as Hikaka, a law graduate, is popular and his kidnapping might cost Maoists considerable sympathy.



In Kandhamal as well as in Makangiri and Koraput districts, the Maoists have come under increasing pressure in the wake of states like Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar coordinating their actions.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Saturday, March 24, 2012

GADVASU Pashu Palan Mela: A multi functional treat

Ludhiana, 23-Mar, 2012

The Pashu Palan Mela of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana will be a very useful event for people of all the walks of life. Dr V.K.Taneja, Vice-Chancellor, GADVASU, Ludhiana expressed these views on the eve of Pashu Palan Mela which is going to be held on 21st and 22nd March 2012. He said that theme slogan of this mela is "Kheti Vibhinnta da eh uttam badal, Machhi Palan te Pashu Palan nu karo safal.". (The best option of agriculture diversification is to develop fisheries and livestock professions).

Dr. Taneja said that four Chief Minister's awards will be conferred on to progressive farmers of different livestock professions. Including them Harminder Singh Sandhu for buffalo dairy farming, Harbhajan Singh for fisheries, Jatinder Singh is for cattle dairy farming and Lakhwinder Singh for piggery.

He said that it mela will be a centre of attraction for not only the livestock, Fisheries and Poultry farmers but for children, youth, senior citizens as well as women also, because different items will be on display for different age groups, sections and nature. Dr Taneja revealed that whereas cattle, buffalo, goat, rabbit, different species of fish, etc. will be the main attraction for children, country-side scenes of University will be special attraction for urban children. He further stated that Pashu Palan Mela will be more useful to vocational courses students studying animal husbandry and rural culture as they will get more valuables information about the latest interventions in the field of animal husbandry, dairying, fisheries, etc.

The experts of the University will provide on the spot knowhow through discussion and practical demonstrations regarding upkeep, vaccination and other timely cares of the small pets like dogs, cats, etc. The pet owners will also get information about the latest products which are now available in the market. Beside this, the University had done commendable work on ornamental fishes. The peoples interested in keeping ornamental fishes in their houses/work place can also get latest information about the feeding and management practices. He added that the different species of coloured fishes keep the mind fresh and help in relieving the mental stress. Moreover, fish is a pet of calm nature that does not produce any kind pollution.

The house-wives who have either independently taken up the livestock profession or helping in it can also interact with the experts of the University to get the latest information about the livestock products and their usages. It is also a good privilege to taste and know about the different mouth watering vegetarian and non-vegetarian delicacies like Mithat Dahi, sweetened and salted lassi, flavoured milk, Ice creams, Yoghurt ice-cream, Sweets, meat patties, different types of meat pickles and good quality cheese prepared by College of Dairy Science & Technology and the Department of Livestock Products Technology.

Some unscrupulous elements have developed synthetic milk which is in the market. University has made arrangements to create awareness about this aspect and demonstration on quality evaluation will be made.

The exhibition depicting latest interventions in the field of animal husbandry will also be very helpful for the unemployed youth of the state who are especially interested in setting up their own business in livestock sector with minimum finances. The financial institutes like banks, insurance agencies etc. and experts of the University will provide them the up to date knowledge. The food processing machinery will also be on display in the Mela to educate the masses about the latest interventions involved in the preparation of hygienic, fast and good quality food products. It will be beneficial for a common man as well as an entrepreneur.

University publications containing information relating to livestock diseases, their remedial measures and information regarding training courses to set up new units in livestock will also be available.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Getting together to celebrate Ugadi

LUDHIANA: Dr Srihdhar Francis, who belongs to Telugu community and works in a city hospital, celebrated Ugadi, the Telugu new year, with other members in city on Friday. He said this new year is celebrated with high spirits by the Telugu community. But felt bit alone in city.



The things are different here as there are only a few Telugu people in the city. However, we celebrate the day in the best possible way, he said. He said left with no other option of celebrating the festival in the traditional Telugu style, he threw a party for his friends in the hospital at night.



I invited my friends for dinner at my place and told all of them about Ugadi. I told them as to how Ugadi has come from words Yuga and Adi, which means beginning of a new age, said Francis. He added all his friends were delighted to know about the festival and asked many questions about the festival. They also enjoyed partying with him and gave him wishes.






News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Buranges host Gudi Padwa feast

BRS NAGAR: The Burange family of BRS Nagar was very excited on Friday as they prepared to celebrate Gudi Padwa with other Maharashtrians in the city. Right from the morning, Suwarna, who is a manager in a private bank, was busy in the kitchen while her husband Prasad, an assistant professor in PAU, was busy preparing gudi.



Suwarna said she woke up early on Friday morning to prepare traditional dishes like shree khand, karhi, dal bhaji, aloo bhaji, masala bhat (rice), Maharashtriyan wada, chutni and koshimbhri.



All these dishes were placed in a special thali and offered to the gudi and then served to family members and friends, she said.



Prasad had prepared the gudi using neem and mango leaves, brocade that he tied with a jute rope on a bamboo stick and put an inverted copper pot with a swastika on top with sandal powder. He then tied it on the railing in the balcony of his house.



The couple had also made a rangoli near the gudi. Ravi Kumar Chauhan, a resident of New Janta Nagar who works as a general manager in a resort on Sat Paul Mittal Road, offered a special party to his colleagues, where they all enjoyed the Marathi dishes.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Punjab Agricultural University professors win T20

LUDHIANA: For once professors of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) and Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College (GNDEC) set aside their books on Friday morning and got into action on the cricket pitch for a T20 match for the Professor Cup. Professor Rupinderjeet Singh led the GNDEC team while the PAU team played under captain professor Satish Kumar.



GNDEC won the toss and chose to bat and made 157 runs in 20 overs. However, PAU chased the target and made 159 runs in 19.2 over. Sukhmeet Singh of PAU team was declared man of the match. Winning captain, Satish Kumar said the victory moment was great. They posed a tough fight but we lifted the cup, he said.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Special platter for Navaratra palate

LUDHIANA: With the onset of Navaratras, city restaurants are serving a special platter. Those fasting are making the most of the sumptuous food on offer.



While Spice Cube on Ferozepur road is serving an array of delicious food with an entire menu dedicated to Navratra special cuisines, Gigabyte has a special thali. Sarabha Nagar resident, Neetu Dhindsa, 26, who indulged in the special Navratra food, went gaga over the delights and said, Food was delicious and the concept is commendable.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Cycling to spread light

LUDHIANA: A group of 12 cyclists paid tributes to martyrs Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev in a unique way. They cycled around and lighted candles near the statues of all the three.



These cyclists started their trip from Sarabha Nagar market around 6.30 pm and moved on the Ferozepur road to the Jagraon bridge. We lighted candles near the statues of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, who are our ideals and inspiration, said 37-years-old Devinder Nagi, a school teacher, resident of Model Gram.



From there, we moved towards the Jail road and lighted candles at Namdhari Shaheedi Smarak near civil hospital. After that we moved towards the Nau Ghara mohalla to the house of martyr Sukhdev Thapar, said 27-years-old businessman, Gagandeep Singh from BRS Nagar.



These cyclists stopped for a while at the house of Sukhdev Thapar, lighted candles and started their journey back to Sarabha nagar. Cycling gives you a peace of mind. Just as you pedal, you know at least you are cutting down some pollution that cannot be reduced otherwise even by thousand speeches, said 38-years-old Parminder Singh, a businessman of Maharaj Nagar.



Soni Verma, 14, a resident of Model Gram said, I had watched the movie Legend of Bhagat Singh with my father and since then I feel in love with all the three. When I came to know that we are going to Sukhdevs house, I just couldnt resist.



This enthusiastic group of cyclists included people from all spheres of life, be it 19-years-old Jasman of Model Gram, 27-years-old businessman Digvijay Singh from South Model Gram, 12-years-old Anhad Panesar from SKS Nagar, 9-years-old Jaspratap Singh from Model Gram, 13-years-old Manav Mudgal from Deep Nagar, Ashnoor Sidhu, 16, from Bharat Nagar chowk, Himanshu Marjara, 30, from Vikas Nagar and 16-years-old Manny Panday from Krishna Nagar.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Rollback may derail improvements

LUDHIANA: Commuters have not taken in good spirit the rollback in rail fares announced by the railway minister, Mukul Roy, on Thursday. They feel it is part of the political game and due to their vested interests, they are ignoring the financial crisis that the railways is facing.



Once authorities had increased the fare, they should have tried to find out ways to improve the facilities for passengers.



Rajesh Sharma, a businessman and resident of Kitchlu Nagar says, There was no problem in paying more money because at this time, railways is in dire need of funds. This hike could have helped them in improving food, cleanliness and other amenities in trains.



A homemaker and resident of Chandigarh Road, Meenu Mittal, said, If there would be no money with the railway authorities, then how would they start more trains and improve stations, trains and quality of food served. All these things are also equally important.



A railway official claimed, There is severe financial crisis in railways but even then authorities are doing nothing for increasing the income. Already, there is shortage of rail coaches and if situation remains like this, it would be tough to provide new coaches to the passengers.



He said the employees would not get salaries if the situation continues.



The hike in rail passenger fares for second class suburban and non-suburban, Sleeper, AC chair car and AC 3-tier was rolled back on Thursday. However, the increase of 15 paise per km and 30 paise per km in passenger fares in AC 2-tier and AC-1 tier has been kept unchanged. On March 14, while presenting rail budget, former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi had proposed the hike in rail fares after 8 years.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Slew of activities held to honour shaheeds

LUDHIANA: Zindagi Live Foundation and PCTE Group of Institutes organized a mega blood donation camp on the martyrdom day of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev at campus number II in Baddowal on Friday.



About 328 students and staff donated blood at the camp. A team headed by Dr Manvi Gupta of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Dr Attri from civil hospital and Dr Rupinder from Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) collected the blood. Badi Haibowal-resident Shikha Sood, a student of BCA-Final Year who donated blood, said, It was my first time.



Eye donation camp



The Rotaract Club of Ludhiana Medicos, under the aegis of Rotary Club Ludhiana Greater, in association with Dayanand Medical College & Hospitals (DMCH) department of ophthalmology organized an eye donation programme as a tribute to the legend of Shaheed Bhagat Singh.



Twenty medical students spread awareness among shopkeepers of Haibowal main market. Project directors Srishti Arora and Sameer Mittu said they were able to register about 40 people to donate eyes.



Kids come dressed up as freedom fighters



Students of Kiddies Paradise School, Kochar Market, commemorated the 81st martyrdom day of Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru and Sukhdev. The school was decorated with slogans Sar pharoshi ki tammana and Shaheedo ki chittaon mein lagage har bars mele. The students paid obeisance to the martyrs and sang patriotic songs Mera rang de basanti chola and also presented a skit Aye watan tere liye. School children also came dressed up as the martyrs.


News From: http://www.7StarNews.com

Navaratra special at Pak stalls

CHANDIGARH: With the beginning of Navratra on Friday, the Pakistani food court Liza Food Corner at the ongoing \'Made in Pakistan\' exposition, being held at Himachal Bhawan, Sector 28, introduced a special Navratra Thali on its menu, offering tandoori paranthas and curd with spices brought all the way from Pakistan.



The food court was otherwise famous for its non-vegetarian dishes like chicken tikka, chicken kabab, malai kabab and chicken biryani, which sold like hot cakes on Thursday, the first day of exposition.



The food stall introduced the special thali as a mark of respect towards the Indian festival, as it already had vegetarian dishes like chana puri, veg biryani, meethe chawal, dahi bhalla and gol gappas in its menu.



Mujahid Butt, a trader with the food corner said, \"Someone told us on Thursday that an Indian festival will start from Friday and many people do not eat non-vegetarian during this festival, so we decided to add a vegetarian dish, which is our specialty.\"



Faisal Azeen, owner of the food corner said, \"Considering the occasion, we have also included a special aloo tikki prepared in pure desi ghee. We are happy that people have been appreciating our flavours. People flock our corner asking for their favourites from our menu even before we set it up.\"



Hasan, another trader from Pakistan, added, \"This had to be done as we are in India now, but even back home in Pakistan, we celebrate Indian festivals. We recently celebrated Holi and Shivratri. The temples made around 800-900 years ago are still intact and are taken care of in Pakistan. The ones who have created the boundaries are a few, but the majority still lives with Aman Ki Asha.\"



The Navaratra specific initiative was appreciated by the visitors, particularly those who visited for the second time.



Hitesh Kang, a Chandigarh resident said, \"On Thursday, I came to taste the popular chicken biryani, but had checked out the entire menu. When I saw an add-on dish today, I asked if they would add a new dish every day. But, the Navaratra reason behind the new dish is a gesture that deserves to be appreciated.\"


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Jhankar winds up with musical night

CHANDIGARH: Panjab University\'s annual cultural fest Jhankar 2012 concluded on Friday with a scintillating performance by Punjabi singer Sheery Mann. Though, a lot of empty chairs were seen during the Sheery Mann night, a score of students and outsiders enjoyed Mann\'s songs while dancing in the front of stage. The famous \"Yaar Anmole\" of Mann was the most enjoyed song in the event.



And breaking stereotypes this year, the much awaited event of Mr and Ms Panjab University was also held on the day. Aaisha Ansari, student of MA-I in public administration, was declared Miss PU and Gurvinder Singh of DAV, College, Sector 10, was declared Mr PU at the event.



Simranjit Kaur Gill, convener of Jhankar, said a total 24 university students including boys and girls have participated in the fashion show. The program started around 7pm and concluded around 10.30pm. Heavy security including university security guards and local cops were deployed for avoiding any unwanted incident.\"


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Indecent proposals

CHANDIGARH: Imagine returning from a great trip abroad and uploading the fascinating photos of the trip online when a line pops up - \"Looking for a decent female friend?\" Or \"Lonely guys welcome to intimate chat\" while you are chatting with a friend on the latest office or campus gossip.



If you cursed but didn\'t know why this happened, you are one of those many online users, especially those visiting social networking sites, who are affected by \"pornbot\" - which has such lines interrupting your online sojourn, often with the intent to guide you to different sites.



Other ways of luring users put out lines like - \'Looking for fun at exotic locations?\', \"An excellent business opportunity is waiting for you\" or posts like \"I bet you cannot watch this video for more than 15 seconds\" or \"Hey, look what happened to me last night\" and \"I won free bucks by just clicking on the webpage, so I suggest you the same.\"



Though in most of the cases, sources of these pornbots and spams, which stealthily crawled into your profile, could not be traced but in some cases these are believed to be circulated by trained hackers, hired by professional companies.



\"Pornbots have make life difficult for the netizens, all across the world. We usually do not know their source and sometimes we also do not realize that they are continuously following us. Every other day, I have a new pornbot tweet in my tweeter account,\" said Rashmi Thakur, who works with a public relations company.



In many cases, pornbots are automatically originated planned programmes. These are designed so smartly that they easily pretend to be humans. Once, an individual starts chatting with them, there is a virus attack, harming the computer system and in some cases the profile is also suspended. Some companies are also creating pornbots to continuously follow their potential customers. Besides, Facebook spams are equally annoying for the users.



\"Once there was a porn spam posted on my Facebook profile. I clicked and it automatically got posted on the profile page of all members, who were there in my friend list. I got scores of calls from my friends and the situation was so embarrassing for me,\" said Mohnish Verma, a freelance writer, told TOI.



Suchita Ghai, a commerce student, said: \"It is not possible for members of social networking sites to ban spam or pornbot but the technical team of these sites can certainly ban them. Yes, there is a democracy but I really wonder that how these things can flourish in our society.\"


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Big cat’s rare rescue

CHANDIGARH: The rescue of a leopard marooned for 11 days in a narrow cable-carrying pipe underneath the runway at the IAF base outside Chandigarh is among the most challenging accomplishments in the annals of wildlife management. While the leopard refused to succumb to the most tempting baits placed in traps, the security considerations tied down the hands of wildlife officials engaged in the operation that went on 24x7.



The leopard was finally tranquilized on Thursday night after a two-day-long operation to manoeuvre it into a small patch of the 100-foot pipe, which had a diameter of just 3.5 feet. Cranes were used to lift the hatches opening into the pipe and iron grills placed to continuously \"squeeze in\" the leopard. With a blend of cajoling and threatening noises, the leopard\'s free run was progressively reduced by sandbagging and grilling the spaces in the pipe. Then a JCB machine broke down the lanter of the pipe, enabling two thin men to slip in. Finally, the leopard could be successfully tranquilized.



A fine male of about six years age, the leopard put up tremendous resistance, as the operation to squeeze it into \"a spot\" was underway. It was sent to the Chhatbir zoo after the rescue, where it recovered and even had its first meal of chicken on Friday. It is one of the few leopards rescued alive in the region.



A senior UT forests and wildlife official said, \"The hindrance was that the pipe carried a maze of the IAF communication and power cables. We couldn\'t fire when it was far away as the tranquilizing dart may have hit the wrong body part. The pipe was so narrow that it was difficult even for thin men to slide in deep.\'\'



The operation, conducted jointly by the UT, Chhatbir zoo and Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, took off when the leopard was not lured by the live baits and meat placed at both ends of the pipe.


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Engineering student hacks bro-in-law’s FB account

CHANDIGARH: An engineering student, colluded with his brother, also studying engineering, to hack the Facebook account of his brother-in-law and post obscene remarks about his estranged wife and her mother.



Neeraj Pandhir and his younger brother Sahil Pandhir of Rohtak district were booked under section 66 of Information Technology Act. Though Neeraj is pursuing his engineering from a private institute in Rohtak, Sahil is studying in Chandigarh.



Neeraj, who is having a matrimonial dispute with his wife, who is currently staying in Sector 22, and is believed to have tried to get back at her. The dispute is pending before crime against women cell (CAW) of Chandigarh Police. The hacking of Facebook account came to light when the accused\'s brother-in-law started receiving phone calls about his sister and mother. The involvement of accused brothers established after ascertaining the identities and internet connection of both of them through the cyber scrutiny. Police said accused brothers would be arrested shortly.



It is not the first matrimonial dispute, which turned into cyber crime. In October, 2011, a computer engineer Navdeep Chahal was held for making his wife\'s false Facebook account.


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Sri Lanka intimidating activists: UN rights chief

GENEVA: The UN rights chief warned on Friday against reprisals on Sri Lankan activists, noting \"threats and intimidation\" carried out by Colombo in the run-up to a contested war crimes probe vote.



The UN Human Rights Council on Thursday adopted to the consternation of Colombo a US-led resolution demanding a probe to violations carried out in Sri Lanka\'s battle against Tamil Tigers separatists during their war in 2009.



The run-up to the vote was marked by \"an unprecedented and totally unacceptable level of threats, harassment and intimidation directed at Sri Lankan activists who had travelled to Geneva to engage in the debate, including by members of the 71-member official Sri Lankan government delegation,\" said Navi Pillay.



\"There must be no reprisals against Sri Lankan human rights defenders in the aftermath of yesterday\'s adoption by the Human Rights Council of a resolution on Sri Lanka,\" said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.



In Sri Lanka, media outlets have also been running a \"continuous campaign of vilification, including naming and in many cases picturing activists, describing them as an \'NGO gang\' and repeatedly accusing them of treason, mercenary activities and association with terrorism,\" said Pillay.



\"Some of these reports have contained barely veiled incitement and threats of retaliation,\" she added.



Some were carried by state media outlets or filed by journalists accredited to the Human Rights Council session through the Sri Lankan mission, noted the UN rights chief.



In one example, a video clip carried on website www.adaderana.lk showed a member of parliament Mervyn Silva accusing three activists of giving evidence against Sri Lanka at the council.



\"If you get caught by me in Sri Lanka, I will break your limbs in public,\" he warned the three in the clip.



Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan envoy to Geneva himself also received an anonymous letter which UN security and the police are investigating, she said.
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Pakistan to seek unbiased access to nuclear technology

ISLAMABAD: Prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani will call for Pakistan to be given \"nondiscriminatory access\" to nuclear technology for peaceful uses, including power generation, at the Nuclear Security Summit to be held in Seoul next week.



Gilani, who will attend the Summit in Seoul along with foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar, will be among the lead speakers at an inaugural dinner being hosted by the South Korean president for heads of state and government in the meet.




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Sex assault case haunts Bales

A second incident involving alcohol and violence surfaced on Thursday in the background of the army staff sergeant suspected of killing 17 Afghan villagers - a 2008 allegation that he thrust a woman\'s hand to his crotch and fought with her boyfriend.



A Pierce County sheriff\'s department incident report quoted a woman claiming Robert Bales told her she was beautiful, then \"pulled her hand to his crotch\" outside a Tacoma, Washington, bowling alley. The deputy described Bales as \"extremely intoxicated\" . The report says Bales began punching and kicking the woman\'s boyfriend.
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Friday, March 23, 2012

Cabinet gives nod to quick divorces

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Friday okayed changes in the Marriage Act to quicken the process, in a move that will be welcomed by couples trapped in unhappy alliances.



The changes approved for the Cabinet also marks the first attempt to legally recognize a wife\'s right to property acquired by her spouse during their marriage as well as to give equal rights to both adopted and biological children.



The Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010, seeks to make \"irretrievable breakdown of marriage\" a new ground for grant of divorce, in a shift from the current regime where estranged couple with irreconcilable differences is constrained to keep up the fiction of being couple for an indeterminably long period. The Parliament\'s Standing Committee had last March opposed doing away with the waiting period that couples seeking divorce have to endure before they can move a joint petition seeking annulment of marriage.



The recommendation has only partly been heeded, with the government proposing that that the duration of cooling-off period be left for courts to decide.



According to the amendments, while a wife can oppose a husband\'s plea for a divorce under the new \"irretrievable breakdown of marriage\" clause, the husband will have no such rights to oppose if the wife moves the court on the same grounds: the dichotomy reflecting deference to the view that allowing speedier divorces will leave women, already having to deal with the pro-male bias in law, worse off.



The decision of the Cabinet was still opposed by Ranjana Kumari of the Centre for Social Research. \"Making divorce more accessible will hurt women. A majority of women in our country are illiterate and are unaware of their legal rights and this can leave them in a lurch.\" She, however, welcomed the move to give women a share in marital property.



The government has accepted the recommendation of the parliamentary committee that women should have a share in the property of her husband in case of a divorce, but the quantum of share will be decided by the courts on case-by-case basis.



AIDWA\'s Sudha Sundararaman said, \"Amendments recognizing women\'s right to property is a positive step but the government should have taken it a step further and made it part of the law rather than leave it for the courts to decide.\"



\"The judiciary is not always sensitive especially to women who are victims,\" she added arguing that leaving it to the discretion of the court was not a positive step.



According to the redrafted Bill passed by the Cabinet, adopted children will have rights on par with biological offspring of a couple in case the parents opt for a divorce.



Times View



The changes proposed in the laws governing divorce are steps in the right direction. TOI has always held that when a married couple wants to break up, it makes no sense for the law to act as a barrier or a stalling mechanism. Keeping people locked in unhappy marriages does no good to either them or society. Giving women a right to marital property and allowing for one-time settlements also are commonsensical decisions. Most heartening of all is the proposal to treat adopted children on a par with biological offspring. The discrimination is clearly out of sync with a modern, liberal society and this alignment with the times is welcome.




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Dumped by BJP, NRI Anshuman Mishra targets MM Joshi

NEW DELHI: BJP\'s embarrassment over its mysterious decision to support NRI Anshuman Mishra for a Rajya Sabha seat from Jharkhand worsened on Friday, when he accused senior party leader and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Murli Manohar Joshi of seeking to meet the functionaries of companies involved in the 2G scam.



Mishra, who was dropped as swiftly as he was backed by the party, said that Joshi, chairman of Parliament\'s PAC, as well as a \"woman friend\" of his had asked him to arrange meetings with companies who allegedly benefited from the 2G scam. He said that Joshi had sought those meetings with officials of companies when the PAC was investigating the spectrum scam.



The NRI, who was talking to a TV channel, also claimed that Joshi repeatedly approached him for funds while contesting the 2004 and 2009 Lok Sabha elections, claiming that his phone records would bear him out.



Joshi denied the charge, dubbing Mishra a loser: a reference to the NRI\'s failure to seal BJP\'s support after he had got the leadership to direct party\'s MLAs to support him in the Rajya Sabha elections. Joshi also said that he would welcome a probe into the charges, promising to extend all cooperation.



Congress which has been at the receiving end of Joshi\'s indictments of the government in the PAC, seemed to enjoy the discomfiture of the veteran BJP leader. AICC spokesperson Manish Tiwari said: \" I respect Joshi. But given the nature of allegations by a BJP endorsed RS nominee, who was forced to withdraw because of internal party differences, I leave it to Joshi\'s conscience what should be his course of action\".



The professed respect notwithstanding, the comment could also be interpreted as a hint for Joshi to quit his post. It certainly meant that Congress will be watching Mishra\'s next steps more carefully than it would ordinarily have.



Mishra had earlier attacked L K Advani, Yashwant Sinha and Shanta Kumar for putting a spanner in his Rajya Sabha works.



On Friday, he focused his fire on Joshi to the exclusion of other senior BJP leaders, though the hurt over having been axed came out clearly in the form of claim that he had been raising funds for the party since late 1990s.



He stressed that his quarrel was not with the BJP as a whole; but only with Joshi who after having taken his help to raise funds, has gone back on his promise to launch him into the \"political stream\".



This must be one of the rare instance, where Advani and Joshi, perennially at loggerheads in the organizational equation, have been embarrassed by the same source.



Mishra told the TV channel that he had unfettered access to the BJP\'s top brass and rank and file including chief ministers like Gujarat CM Narendra Modi. Mishra said he was ready to face any probe into his allegations.


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Relief for NRelief for Narendra Modi as SC withdraws notice on riot casesarendra Modi as SC withdraws notice on riot cases

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday withdrew notices it issued on Monday to Gujarat CM Narendra Modi and 2002 riots inquiry panel headed by Justice G T Nananvati while admitting that it had a mistaken impression about the contents of the NGO\'s petition.



A bench of Justices D K Jain and A R Dave had on Monday issued notices to Modi and the panel on an appeal NGO Jan Sangharsh Manch, which had sought a direction to the inquiry commission to examine Modi for his alleged role in the riots.



The bench on Friday told the NGO\'s counsel Colin Gonsalves that it had issued notices on the petition on a \"wrong impression\" that it was similar to a bunch of appeals filed by riot victims, which were pending before the apex court.



But, on close scrutiny, the bench said, I found that the appeal by Amrish Patel representing the NGO had nothing to do with the pending issues. \"Hence, we decided to list it for directions and recall our previous order,\" it said.



\"Here the question is entirely different and is independent of the pending cases before us. The question squarely for our consideration here is whether certain witnesses before the Justice Nanavati Commission should have been heard,\" the bench said and listed the appeal for fresh hearing on March 26.


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Lack of separate council riles physiotherapists

NEW DELHI: Physiotherapists in India are up in arms against the Union health ministry for not creating a separate council to regulate the medical steam under the new National Commission on Human Resources in Health (NCHRH) Bill.



The fight is led by celebrity physiotherapist Dr Ali Irani, a long-standing physio for the Indian cricket team and also boasts of a host of Bollywood stars like Salman Khan and Rani Mukherjee among his patients.



The new Bill presented in Parliament recently aims to create an overarching body that will have the Medical Council of India (MCI), Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), Nursing Council of India (NCI), Dental Council of India (DCI) and the proposed Central Councils for Paramedical and Allied Medical Sciences Education under it.



The Union health ministry says, \"The paramedics council will cover lab and imaging technicians and physiotherapists.\"



This, however, has not gone down well with India\'s 30,000 physiotherapists. Dr Irani argued, \"How can physiotherapy which is a four and a half year degree course be put at par with a two year paramedical course meant for technicians?\"



Dr Ali is seeking a separate physiotherapy council and has taken his fight to several MPs, including head of the parliamentary standing committee Mr Brajesh Pathak.



Dr Ali said pointed out that 187 colleges offer a bachelor\'s degree in physiotherapy. Similarly, 82 colleges and 12 universities offer PG and Ph.D degrees, respectively, in the subject. Almost 80% of all physiotherapists are women.



\"It\'s strange that the ministry is turning a deaf ear to our demands. We are asking them to regulate us, but they aren\'t interested. A Council will ensure a common standard of education, practice and pay. It will also put in place regulations that all physiotherapists will have to follow. Now, physiotherapists are functioning as per their whims and fancies that can be damaging for patients,\" Dr Ali explained.



The issue was also taken up by Congress MP Priya Dutt with Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad. Azad assured Dutt that the NCHRH Bill would include a Council for physiotherapy as well.



The overarching body would be headed by a secretary-general, who will hold office for a fixed term of three years. S/he will have five separate councils under it, each dedicated for categories like medicine, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy and paramedics.



The PMO is now pushing for an early introduction and passage of the NCHRH Bill by Parliament. It has asked the Union health ministry to work towards \"strengthening of public health through creation of necessary human resources capacities at all levels.\"



A ministry official said, \"The parliamentary standing committee for health is examining the Bill and are expected to submit their comments in three months. We hope to place it in the next Parliament session.\"


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Politics not a career for me: Dinesh Trivedi

NEW DELHI: Former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi, who was forced to quit over raising fares in the rail Budget, on Friday claimed that the PM would never have asked him to step down and would have preferred to retain him in the Cabinet even if it meant losing Trinamool Congress\'s support. He insisted that he resigned on his own to save UPA from the trouble.



Trinamool MP, however, remained evasive on joining Congress, saying \"I take life as it comes. Politics for me is not a career.\"



Speaking to a TV channel, he replied in the affirmative when asked if the PM would have preferred to retain him at the cost of losing TMC\'s support and the government possibly collapsing. \"That is a fact,\" Trivedi said.



Referring to PM Singh\'s statement in Parliament that he \"regretted\" his resignation, he said, he was \"communicated\" that the PM would have never asked for his resignation. \"Let\'s not get into details,\" he said, when asked if the communication came from a reliable person. \"I am not going to talk about things at all. If I say something, I stand by it.\"



Trivedi also dismissed the suggestion that he resigned after getting indications from the PMO and the Congress and insisted he stepped down to avoid putting the government into a quandary.



\"There is no way... no indication from any quarter. And the Congress party would never have asked neither the PM would have asked... if I had not resigned on that particular evening (last Sunday), I could have brought uncertainty to the government itself and that is not my job,\" he added.



Trivedi said he tendered his resignation because his party and its leader Mamata Banerjee had asked him to do so.


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Hillary Clinton asks India, China to join anti-bribery convention

WASHINGTON: Asserting that Corruption siphons funding away from critical services, US secretary of state Hillary Clinton on Friday asked countries like India and China to join the OECD\'s 38-member Anti-Bribery Convention.



The convention aims at reducing corruption in developing countries by encouraging sanctions against bribery in international business transactions carried out by companies based in the convention member countries.



\"Through our bilateral diplomacy and at the G-20, we are encouraging major economies such as China, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia to join the convention as well,\" Clinton said at Transparency International-USA\'s annual integrity award dinner on Thursday.



\"We support the follow-through that\'s necessary to enforce anti-corruption norms such as the new review process that promotes implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption,\" she said.



Clinton said corruption and the lack of transparency eats away like a cancer the trust people should have in their government, at the potential for broad-based, sustainable, inclusive growth.



\"Corruption stifles entrepreneurship, siphons funding away from critical services, poor fiscal transparency makes it impossible to hold governments accountable. And if these problems go on long enough, if they run deep enough, they literally can and have been shaking societies to the core,\" she said.



The US, she said, has made it a priority to fight corruption and promote transparency and the country has been at this for quite a number of years now.



In 1996, the US played a major role in developing the first legally-binding commitment by governments to fight corruption.



Clinton said the US is expanding and mobilising a global consensus in support of greater transparency - a global architecture of anti-corruption institutions and practices.



\"Along with Brazil, we launched the Open Government Partnership. It is a network of support for government leaders and citizens working to bring more transparency and accountability to governments,\" she said.



\"We\'re building this anti-corruption consensus in other ways as well. In what is called the Deauville Partnership, we are working with our Arab partners on anti-corruption, open government, and asset recovery efforts,\" she said.



\"At the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), we were pleased to welcome Colombia and Russia into the Working Group on Bribery last year. It will be an important milestone when both have become full parties to the Anti-Bribery Convention,\" Clinton said.


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No security tents for VIP homes: Punjab and Haryana HC

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court set an example by directing the administration to remove the ugly khaki and green security tents outside that dot the fronts of homes of judges, and then ordered a similar clearing from the homes of all top bureaucrats and politicians across the city.



The tents had come up in the 1980s and 90s when Punjab was in the grips of militancy. But long after the situation turned normal, the security paraphernalia was kept alive as a status symbol.



On Friday, at least 75 security pavilions were removed in the green belt of the city designed by Le Corbusier. Of these, 60 were occupied by securitymen of Punjab ministers and MLAs and three by the Haryana government.



The Punjab and Haryana high court\'s order to remove security tents from the times of militancy from the homes of politicians and bureaucrats met with opposition within hours of the move on Friday. Surjeet Kaur Bhalla, wife of former Punjab CM Surjeet Singh Barnala, said the action was uncalled for.



\"The arrangement was made due to security considerations. I will soon find out about others whose tents have been removed and lodge a protest,\" she said. By way of example, the court had ordered the junking of tents in front of judges\' homes on Thursday. By 10am on Friday, 75 such pavilions were removed. The court then proceeded to order the clearing of tents outside politicians\' and officials\' homes. Twelve of the tents were at the homes of officials of the Chandigarh union territory administration.



The issue of tents in the \"green belt\" of Chandigarh was hanging fire since 2009 when a single-judge bench of the high court took suo motu note of illegal encroachment of government land and parks outside politicians\' homes by security staff, most of which had come up during the years of militancy.



Justice Ranjit Singh of the HC on July 6, 2009 had issued a notice to the Chandigarh administration asking its officials to conduct a survey to check such encroachment, but nothing was done, likely because of the resistance from the powerful people of the city.



When the matter came up for hearing on Friday before a division bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover, the Chandigarh administration said it had removed all the tents outside judges\' houses. Once the compliance report was heard, the court ordered the removal of all other tents.



The court was also informed that six tents pitched outside the homes of Punjab officials could not be removed for want of permission from the Union home ministry as these were occupied by CRPF and ITBP personnel.



Hearing this, bench directed the authorities to get the approval for the removal of these tents and inform the court on Tuesday.



Times View



The chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana high court has shown the way and we hope others will follow suit. Indeed, governments should take note and not wait for courts to pass similar orders to act. It is not our case that nobody needs security cover, though there can be doubts about how many of those with such cover actually need it. If the idea is to protect people rather than just provide them a status symbol, there is no reason why security has to be so in-your-face or so much of an inconvenience to the public at large. The entire world today lives with the harsh reality of threats to those in public life, but they have found more discreet but no less effective ways of dealing with them.
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