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Kejriwal’s party slams Delhi govt on EWS quota

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 30 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday came down heavily on the Delhi government over the issue of reservation for poor students in the city's private schools operating on land provided by the state administration. Calling the proposal to give 15% reservation to poor students from Class II -XII a betrayal of the city's poor, the party demanded that the quota be increased to 20% as proposed earlier.

Gopal Rai, the spokesperson for AAP, alleged that the Delhi government has "cleverly" chalked out a plan in benefit of private schools."They initially came up with a provision of 20% seats for poor people in private schools for whom government had provided land at concession rates. But now by lowering the limit to 15%, they are favouring private schools," he said.

Rai said, "AAP will take up the issue along with other agendas of the party like rising prices and corruption in the coming days."

AAP cited a notice dated January 25, 2007, where Delhi government had ordered all the 394 private recognized schools in Delhi that have been allotted land at concessional rates by government agencies to reserve 20% seats for students from economically weaker sections (EWS).

However, they alleged, according to the new proposal, which will be presented before the Delhi high court, the quota will be applicable to admissions made from class II-XII, but limited to only 15%.


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Accident victim gets 3lakh damages

NEW DELHI: A man, who had been hit by a rashly-driven car and sustained grievous injuries eight years ago, has been awarded a compensation of over Rs 3 lakhs by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT).

MACT presiding officer Sanjiv Jain directed New India Assurance Company Limited, with which the offending vehicle was insured, to pay Rs 3,56,100 to the petitioner within 30 days. The order came on a petition by a south Delhi resident.


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Most Centre-funded urban plans in Delhi delayed: CAG

NEW DELHI: The CAG's performance audit of JNNURM was tabled in Parliament on Thursday. The report was based on assessments conducted between April to November 2011 through test-check of records of ministries such as urban development, and housing and urban poverty alleviation, as well as various agencies of 25 states and five union territories. The audit covered the mission period from 2005 to 2011.

The report goes on to reveal many loopholes and discrepancies in the execution of projects. In fact, the auditor devotes an entire section to "delay in completion of road projects in Delhi" in the chapter on implementation of urban infrastructure projects.

Out of road and bridge projects approved under JN8N8U8RM for Delhi, the auditors chose four for scrutiny. The report points out that construction of a bridge downstream of the existing Wazirabad bridge was approved at a cost of Rs 1087.40 crore.

The project was to be completed by December 17, 2011. But till May 2012, barely Rs 381.23 crore had been spent - on the approaches of the bridge. "The work is still in progress," the audit reports. It adds that the stipulated date of completion for the main bridge is December 19, 2013.

Next, the audit cites the example of a railway overbri8dge and railway under bridge at railway level crossing at Road number 68 near Nand Nagri which was to be completed by April 20, 2011. Its status remains "in progress". The project was approved at a cost of Rs 102.86 crore and till July 2012, Rs 108.19 crore had already been spent.

That deadlines were flouted and delays marked JNNURM projects comes through in the two other case studies taken up by the CAG. One project involved flyovers at Africa Avenue-Aruna Asaf Ali Road and Vivekanand Marg-Poorvi Marg were approved at a cost of Rs 253.22 crore. The projects were to be finished by February 2009 but could only be completed by October 15, 2010, when the Commonwealth Games were being held in Delhi.The scrutiny also took into account the flyover project at the junction of GT Road and road number 56 near the Apsara border.


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Acid attack survivor wins crores in quiz show

NEW DELHI: Four months ago, acid attack victim Sonali Mukherjee just wanted to die to escape her suffering.

Now, the 27-year-old is a rupee millionaire after appearing on 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' and plans to use her experience to help combat the heinous crime of acid violence, which kills hundreds of people every year, most of them women.

"I've had 22 operations and nine more are remaining, so that at least my eyes and ears are functional," Mukherjee told the Times of India. "If I recover, I want to help people like me. In my nine years of struggle, I have faced a lot. I know the kind of difficulties we have to face, with no help from any quarter."

Nine years ago, three men broke into Mukherjee's home in the middle of the night as she slept and poured acid over her face - burning her skin, melting away her eyelids, nose, mouth and ears and leaving her partly deaf and blind - simply because she spurned their sexual advances.

Left with 70 percent burns and severe disfigurement, Mukherjee, who was a 17-year-old college student in the central Indian town of Dhanbad at the time, endured years of suffering, confined to her home. Her family could not afford the expensive reconstructive surgery she needed to help her live a normal life.

Her three attackers were released after serving three years in prison.

Unable to continue what she said was "half a life with half a face", Mukherjee begged the government to allow her to kill herself. Euthanasia is illegal in India.

MEDIA STAR

In the weeks that followed, Mukherjee's story made national headlines and there was an outpouring of public support for her. Local charities and private hospitals came forward offering to fund the surgery she needed.

The turning point came this weekend, when she was invited to appear as a contestant on the Indian quiz show " Kaun Banega Crorepati" hosted by popular Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, also known as Big B. "I could never imagine that I would meet big people. Meeting Big B was the best thing. He is such a big star, but is so humble and down-to-earth," she said.

Wearing sunglasses and with a red scarf wrapped round her head and partly covering her face, she was guided onto the stage by Bachchan and former Miss Universe Lara Dutta, and given a standing ovation by the audience.

Confidently answering questions on everything from botany and cooking to political history, the young woman scooped 2.5 million rupees with her celebrity partner Dutta.

Mukherjee plans to use her winnings to complete her surgery, but says this is not the end of her struggle. With her new-found celebrity status, she wants to speak out against acid violence, most common in countries such as Cambodia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, where social structures remain deeply patriarchal.

Around 1,500 acid attacks are reported globally each year, 80 percent of them on women, says the London-based charity Acid Survivors Trust International, though it also says this is a gross under-estimate as most victims are scared to speak out.

"I appeal to the government to ensure that these cases are not repeated," said Mukherjee. "Make a separate law, which is not just on paper, but is followed," she said.


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Acid attack victim wins crores on TV show

NEW DELHI: Four months ago, acid attack victim Sonali Mukherjee just wanted to die to escape her suffering.

Now, the 27-year-old is a rupee millionaire after appearing on 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' and plans to use her experience to help combat the heinous crime of acid violence, which kills hundreds of people every year, most of them women.

"I've had 22 operations and nine more are remaining, so that at least my eyes and ears are functional," Mukherjee told the Times of India. "If I recover, I want to help people like me. In my nine years of struggle, I have faced a lot. I know the kind of difficulties we have to face, with no help from any quarter."

Nine years ago, three men broke into Mukherjee's home in the middle of the night as she slept and poured acid over her face - burning her skin, melting away her eyelids, nose, mouth and ears and leaving her partly deaf and blind - simply because she spurned their sexual advances.

Left with 70 percent burns and severe disfigurement, Mukherjee, who was a 17-year-old college student in the central Indian town of Dhanbad at the time, endured years of suffering, confined to her home. Her family could not afford the expensive reconstructive surgery she needed to help her live a normal life.

Her three attackers were released after serving three years in prison.

Unable to continue what she said was "half a life with half a face", Mukherjee begged the government to allow her to kill herself. Euthanasia is illegal in India.

MEDIA STAR

In the weeks that followed, Mukherjee's story made national headlines and there was an outpouring of public support for her. Local charities and private hospitals came forward offering to fund the surgery she needed.

The turning point came this weekend, when she was invited to appear as a contestant on the Indian quiz show " Kaun Banega Crorepati" hosted by popular Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, also known as Big B. "I could never imagine that I would meet big people. Meeting Big B was the best thing. He is such a big star, but is so humble and down-to-earth," she said.

Wearing sunglasses and with a red scarf wrapped round her head and partly covering her face, she was guided onto the stage by Bachchan and former Miss Universe Lara Dutta, and given a standing ovation by the audience.

Confidently answering questions on everything from botany and cooking to political history, the young woman scooped 2.5 million rupees with her celebrity partner Dutta.

Mukherjee plans to use her winnings to complete her surgery, but says this is not the end of her struggle. With her new-found celebrity status, she wants to speak out against acid violence, most common in countries such as Cambodia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, where social structures remain deeply patriarchal.

Around 1,500 acid attacks are reported globally each year, 80 percent of them on women, says the London-based charity Acid Survivors Trust International, though it also says this is a gross under-estimate as most victims are scared to speak out.

"I appeal to the government to ensure that these cases are not repeated," said Mukherjee. "Make a separate law, which is not just on paper, but is followed," she said.


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Let foreign patients pay more: Aiims

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 29 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: Should foreigners be treated for free or at subsidized rates at government hospitals in India? The country's premier hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (Aiims), which has been treating a large number of such patients over the last few years, has raised this question.

India is fast turning into a medical hub, attracting people from the developed world with its low-cost yet superior medical care. But it has been seen that while catering to foreigners, the medical infrastructure of the country becomes inaccessible to locals.

AIIMS recently conducted an internal audit to study the profiles of international patients. It was found that around 1,000 patients came from countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Great Britain and Mexico for surgeries and other procedures every year. The hospital, though, did not maintain any data on the number of such patients who availed OPD services.

The study was conducted by one Dr Neha Jain on the data provided by the hospital. It was found that between January and June, a total of 485 international patients were admitted. Of them, 35% came in for cancer treatment, 24% for neurosurgery, 9% for heart ailments and 1% for other procedures. Altogether 31% of the patients were admitted in the building that houses departments like nephrology, medicine, paediatrics, paediatric surgery and orthopaedics among others. Majority of admissions (56%) were long-term.

"We found several instances where the patients claimed to have been helped by local 'connections' which could not be verified because details mentioned were incorrect," said Dr Shakti Gupta, head of the hospital administration department. He said the hospital authorities were also found to be unaware of the clauses of The Registration of Foreigners Rule, 1946, under which the local authorities have to be intimated about such patients.

"It is possible that touts/brokers are facilitating admission in the name of 'high quality treatment at lowest cost'," Gupta added. The cost of treatment for foreign patients in public sector hospitals like Aiims is 1/100th of their home country. Private hospitals charge about 1/10th of the cost.

A senior doctor said, "Subsidized treatment of foreigners at government-run hospitals puts a lot of strain on our limited resources. It should be allowed only in emergency cases and that too with appropriate documentation. We have hundreds of patients, mostly poor people... who are denied treatment because there is long waiting list in super-specialty departments."

The Gamma Knife Centre at Aiims, which provides surgical treatment for brain disorders, follows the concept of differential costing where the patients from abroad are charged extra. A section of the hospital staff says that a similar policy should be adopted across the centres.


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Sheila Dikshit makes fast recovery after surgery

NEW DELHI: Chief minister Sheila Dikshit, who underwent an angioplasty procedure following blockage in one of her arteries, is "recovering fast" and is likely to be discharged from the hospital on Thursday.

Dr Ashok Seth, chairman of Cardiac Sciences at Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, said Dikshit has been making "good progress" since the procedure was performed on her.

"She was transferred to private ward on Tuesday itself and she has been making good progress. She is recovering rapidly and there is absolutely no problem," Seth said.

The 74-year-old minister has been "very active" post the heart procedure and sources said she even attended to some of her official work at the hospital room. Dikshit underwent angioplasty on Tuesday for opening of the blockage in right coronary artery. She was admitted to the hospital on Monday night following difficulty breathing and throat infection.


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KG Marg parking will not damage baoli, says Intach

NEW DELHI: There's finally good news for office-goers in Connaught Place. India National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (Intach) has recently submitted heritage bylaws for 13th century Agrasen ki Baoli to the ASI and recommended that the NDMC multi-storey parking project in KG Marg will not affect the monument. The recommendation is expected to go a long way in helping NDMC and concessionaire DS Constructions get the coveted nod from National Monuments Authority for the much delayed project.

The bylaws, which have been submitted to the Archaeological Survey of India, will now be forwarded to the NMA alongwith ASI's recommendations for the project. Though the final decision will lie solely with NMA based on their own internal scrutiny and expert discussions, the bylaws are expected to play an influencing role in determining the project's future. According to sources, Intach has said that the parking project will not have any impact on the baoli or any negative heritage impact as the distance is over 200m and in a relatively 'safe zone'.

Intach has also added in their report that while ground water recharge will be very difficult for the stepwell as the water table has gone very low, the baoli could become an important site for rainwater harvesting. The bylaws also stress upon the need for landscaping and improving the surroundings around the monument.

The bylaws are the second that have been submitted to ASI, after Sher Shah Gate. Intach is currently working on the bylaws of half-a-dozen more monuments in south Delhi where most of the information is already available with them through local area plans. While the costs for preparing the bylaws for each monument is ranged at approximately Rs 3.5 lakh, Intach is trying to work out an agreement with ASI to work out the costs.

KG Marg parking is located 216m from Agrasen ki Baoli, and Intach has been entrusted with the task of making the bylaws. In order to give an NOC to NDMC and DS Constructions for the project, NMA had asked that a heritage impact assessment report be prepared. Officials from Intach said the bylaws would incorporate findings by environment experts also.


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Delhi-Noida barrage link to snap for repair

NEW DELHI/NOIDA: The 28-year-old Okhla barrage, an important link between Delhi and Noida, will be closed for repairs for two months from December 15 this year. The UP Irrigation Department is expected to finally start restoring the decrepit bridge after an inspection earlier this year revealed how susceptible it was to a mishap. The repair work will be done in phases, with one carriageway to be closed at a time for a month each while one-way traffic movement will be allowed on the other side. The Delhi-Noida stretch will be closed first.

This can prove to be a traffic nightmare and Delhi and Noida traffic police are working out a plan for the area. With work on Delhi Metro's Phase III to start soon - from South Extension to trans-Yamuna area - traffic snarls worse than usual are expected at Ashram, Nizamuddin Bridge and DND toll road. Almost 1 lakh vehicles pass through the Okhla barrage road every day though it was built for 10,000 vehicles only.

At a meeting between the two state traffic police departments this week, Noida police suggested halving the available carriageway to allow two-way movement. "We will divide the two-lane carriageway with bollards into two single lanes for light vehicles only. Heavy vehicles will be banned," said MP Singh, superintendent of police (Traffic), Noida. "Additional traffic cops will also be deployed to ensure that there are no gridlocks," Singh said.

However, Delhi Police is of the opinion that this would only add to the chaos. "Each carriageway is only two lanes wide, and rather than reducing congestion, it would lead to a bottleneck situation on either side. In case of a breakdown, the entire area will come to a halt. We are still discussing the matter with Noida police and will come up with the best possible solution," said joint commissioner of police (traffic) Satyendra Garg.

Cops point out that bollards are easily knocked over and are unsafe for a stretch that sees such heavy movement of traffic. "Both sides witness equally heavy traffic. Hence, even if we make it one-way for morning and the opposite for evening, it would not solve any problem like it has at Janak Setu bridge. We are suggesting that one side should be allowed to move as usual and the other side be diverted through DND and Nizamuddin Bridge," said a senior traffic police officer of south Delhi.

The bridge, which connects Noida, Delhi, Ghaziabad and Faridabad via Kalindi Kunj, has not seen any repair, except for some patchwork, since it was built. Considering the steadily increasing vehicular pressure on the bridge and its state of disrepair, the Uttar Pradesh state irrigation department had written to the traffic police officers in Delhi and Gautam Budh Nagar earlier this month to take immediate steps to accommodate repair work.

"Since its inception in 1984, the traffic on the bridge has increased manifold. After conducting inspections recently, we found that if repair work was not undertaken immediately, there could be a mishap, considering the enormous density of vehicles using the bridge," said RS Yadav, executive engineer, head works, UP irrigation. "A communication requesting the same had been sent to both authorities in January this year, too," Yadav said. The static load and pressure on the bridge is steadily increasing. We have found that the expansion joints and the rawker roller wiring are extensively damaged. The bridge needs a complete overhaul," Yadav said.

Currently, the narrow four-lane bridge which provides the vital link between South Delhi and Noida offers commuters a bumpy ride. The road is plagued with traffic jams, especially during peak hours.

The bridge was built to check the flow of the Yamuna and prevent floods. It has a two-lane link on each side to connect Noida with areas like Kalindi Kunj and Mathura Road which cannot cope with the volume of traffic.


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Railway staffer killed after his car turned turtle

GHAZIABAD: A railway employee was allegedly killed after his car turned turtle on the Raj Nagar Extension road in Ghaziabad late on Tuesday night. Police said as the victim had been speeding, his car overturned when he took a sharp turn.

The victim, Arjit Gupta, stayed at Brij Vihar. He was returning to Ghaziabad in his Alto after attending a wedding in Noida, added cops. Gupta was undergoing training as a technician with the railways.

"We are not sure of the exact cause for the accident, though prima facie, it is a case of speeding," said a senior police officer. Police said the sharp turn on stretch has made it accident-prone. "We are waiting for the postmortem report to ascertain if the victim was drunk at the time of the accident," said a cop.

After the accident Gupta's car crashed into the ditch below the road, causing severe injuries to his head and chest. "He managed to get out of the car but died outside due to excessive bleeding and trauma," said the police officer.


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Fire in Parliament Annexe

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 28 November 2012 | 22.10

New Delhi: Plumes of smoke due to welding work today triggered a fire alarm in Parliament Annexe this afternoon prompting fire brigade to rush vehicles to the spot.

However, it soon came to light that there was no fire in the high security complex as per the call received by the Delhi Fire Department.

"It was a good intention call. There were smoke due to welding work in the Annexe. As per our procedure, we rushed fire tenders there but found that no fire had broken out," fire brigade officials said.

Six fire tenders have been rushed to the spot.


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Delhi tops list of cities for cases under IT Act

NEW DELHI: Delhi has quietly become the city that has lodged the maximum number of cases under the stringent IT Act in the country.

"We have seen a spurt in cyber crimes. While some of the complaints are innocent like posting a negative comment in one's profile, we are also receiving cases of stolen identity and fake profiles. Husbands who believed their wives were cheating on them have gone to the extent of sharing 'superimposed' photos by hacking into their wives' email accounts,'' said a source.

Political leaders have not been spared. At least three heavyweights, including National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, have seen their fake Twitter accounts being created. No wonder then that from a modest two cases in 2010, cases registered under various sections of the stringent IT Act rose to 39 in 2011 in the capital. This year, already 37 cases have been registered by the cyber cell of Economic Offences Wing of crime branch.

The cops, however, clarified that they have not come across any case in which they had had to arrest a person for breach of peace in the city.

Investigators say merely registering a case does not ensure justice. "In the West, security agencies are taking to ethical hacking to solve decade-old criminal cases. Some agencies are even trying to hack the security network of another country. But in a country like India, which claims it has an eminent space in IT, it takes years to locate a man behind a fake profile,'' said a police officer.

Even institutions are being targeted. "In the middle of this year, the official webpage of Delhi University's (DU) English department was hacked by a Pakistan-based group. If you look at official estimates, hacking in India is now done like never before," said a hacker who claimed it's time ethical hacking was taken seriously.

"When arrested Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander Syed Zabiuddin Ansari admits that he was operating nine e-mail accounts post 26/11 attacks or when Indian Mujahideen claims it used drafts in their email accounts to continue their conversation, the enormity of the problem hits us,'' said an officer in the Special cell.

Cops now want special classes, in line with those that have been devised in Mumbai, to reach out to school and college students and teach them how to use the internet safely. "This is now a part of life, and unless one is educated, they can see these great tools of communication being misused,'' said a crime branch officer.


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PWD makes trees choke on concrete

NEW DELHI: If you are worried about trees facing a hostile environment in the city, here is some more grim news. Many old trees across the city are struggling to survive as their roots are being choked by concrete. One such stretch is on Press Enclave Road where a number of Alstonia or Saptaparni trees are getting choked with concrete and cement tiles as part of Delhi government's pavement construction project, undertaken by PWD.

In complete violation of a 2009 Delhi high court order that a 'breathing space' of 6ft circumference must be left around a tree, PWD workers had sealed the entire space with cement and tiles. Alert members of an NGO, Compassionate Living, intervened and demanded that the workers dig out the concrete immediately. They also called the police to the spot and informed the forest department.

On Tuesday, when a TOI team visited the spot, many trees were still choked by cement and tiles. "Choking the earth with cement and topping with badarpur and tiles is an unsustainable practice that must be stopped immediately. It is a threat to groundwater recharge and survival of trees besides being a sheer waste of public funds. Porous tiles must be used if tiling is unavoidable," said Padmavati Dwivedi of the NGO. Dwivedi has also found many trees - including that of Neem, Arjun and Pilkhan - in front of a school in Saket that are choking because of very less space around them. A pavement project by MCD has left hardly a 2ft circumference space for large trees.

The forest department agreed that the project had violated the HC order. "We will not allow them to continue with the laying of concrete around these trees. Delhi Tree Authority will also circulate the rule of leaving a 6ft breathing space among agencies involved in development works in Delhi," said Sanjiv Kumar, secretary, environment and forests. PWD officials have been alerted. "We are digging out the concrete. Now a space of 6 by 6 ft will be made around the trees," said a PWD official. However, the space that has been created for some trees on Tuesday seemed far smaller than 6ft.

Concrete pavements don't just put a strain on trees but can be bad news for groundwater recharge. The rain water is not able to seep in through the concrete pavement, leading to gradual death of the trees and drying up of underground aquifers. "There is a clear correlation between porosity of soil and groundwater recharge. When it rains, the water permeates to the underground aquifers and the excess rain goes away as run-off to the stormwater drains and later to the river. But, concretization across NCR has gone up and a huge amount of recharge zone is lost. A lot of low-lying areas have also encroached on water bodies. This creates a flooding mess every monsoon," said Bharat Lal Seth, deputy programme manager, water policy, at Centre for Science and Environment.


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Unmarried girl entitled to maintenance

NEW DELHI: An unmarried daughter who is a major can seek maintenance from her father, the Delhi high court has said. Justice Manmohan has asked Swati (name changed) and her father to appear before a magistrate who will then decide if the woman's claim for maintenance has any merit.

The HC relied on a combined reading of a section of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act and Section 125 CrPC to conclude that Swati had the right to claim maintenance, even though she doesn't suffer from any physical or mental abnormality or injury unable to maintain herself.


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False fire alarm in Parliament Annexe

New Delhi: Plumes of smoke due to welding work today triggered a fire alarm in Parliament Annexe this afternoon prompting fire brigade to rush vehicles to the spot.

However, it soon came to light that there was no fire in the high security complex as per the call received by the Delhi Fire Department.

"It was a good intention call. There were smoke due to welding work in the Annexe. As per our procedure, we rushed fire tenders there but found that no fire had broken out," fire brigade officials said.

Six fire tenders have been rushed to the spot.


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Rs 22k relief for damage to police van

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 27 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: The office of the commissioner and the deputy commissioner of Delhi Police has been awarded a compensation of over Rs 22,000 by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in an accident involving a PCR van. MACT presiding officer Nirja Bhatia directed New India Assurance Company Limited, with which the offending vehicle was insured, to pay the amount to the official authorities.
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Court raps bank for bid to ‘extort’ money from woman customer

NEW DELHI: Refusing to tolerate "misuse of the criminal justice system to extort money from consumers", a trial court has directed an international bank to pay a compensation of Rs 10,000 to a woman for mentally harassing her by filing a frivolous complaint.

Metropolitan magistrate Abhilash Malhotra directed the bank to compensate Alka Thakur, a resident of Dwarka in west Delhi, after it failed to prove she had not paid part of a settlement against a loan.

"A criminal litigation stakes the liberty of an individual and the allegation in the complaint needs to be well-founded and real. Misuse of criminal justice system to harass, coerce and extort money from genuine consumers cannot be tolerated at all," the court said while holding that the complaint by the bank against the woman was made "without any reasonable ground".

The court's order came on the complaint filed by the bank against Thakur alleging that she had defaulted on paying the loan and a settlement had been reached with her. Thakur had allegedly paid only Rs 67,735 against the settlement amount of Rs 83,234.

"It is stated that the accused has made a short payment of Rs 15,499 and has breached the terms and conditions of the settlement," the bank alleged.

Thakur, on the other hand, said she had made the payment to a collection agency of the bank and submitted the receipt of the payment.

While the bank denied any connection to the agency and claimed the receipt was fake, the court noted that it could not prove that the agency was not authorized by it.

"It is also not understood why a person who has made payment of Rs 67,735 as per the settlement will stop the remaining payment of Rs15,500 only and suffer litigation for a paltry Rs 5,545," Malhotra said.

"A complainant who comes to court with unclean hands and misuses the judicial process causing harassment to genuine consumers or individuals does not deserve any clemency," the court said.


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Asha's, Usha's, Yashoda's, Atma's and others come to Delhi demanding minimum wage

NEW DELHI: There are ten million of them and they came knocking at the doors of Delhi on 26thand 27thNovember. Urban India has probably never heard of them but in the villages these 'scheme workers' are handling almost every kind of crucial care-giving work - deliveries and small ailments, looking after children and pregnant or nursing mothers, cooking food for students, helping out in hospitals, teaching small tots, etc. Many are handling economic activities too like running self-help groups, teaching new farming methods and implementing MGNREGS. They are the business end of the many schemes that have been floated to provide people in the rural hinterland with essential health, nutrition, education and employment services.

All together these scheme workers are estimated to number a mind-boggling 10 million (1 crore) persons, most of them women. Three giant schemes make up the bulk of them. The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) which provides nutritional diet to infants and pregnant/nursing mothers employs over 27 lakh anganwadi workers and helpers. The mid day meal (MDM) scheme under which 13 crore children are given lunch in elementary schools employs another 27 lakh cooks, 90 percent of them women. And the National Rural Health Mission employs 8.5 lakh ASHA's (Accredited Social Health Activists) who ensure institutional deliveries and look after pregnant women in villages.

Why are they coming to Delhi? Because the government has so far refused to treat them as employees, giving them meager "honorariums" or "incentives". The ASHA, for example, looks after 1000 people, visiting homes, dispensing medicines for minor ailments, giving special care to pregnant women. At the time of delivery of babies, it is she who takes the mother to the nearest hospital. She is on almost 24x7 duty. But she gets Rs.400 for a delivery. So, in a month, if a village has 2 deliveries, she gets Rs.800, which includes transport costs. The Anganwadi worker gets Rs.3000 while her helper gets Rs.1500 per month. They run the anganwadi, cook food for infants, look after them, every day. Then, they also do BPL surveys, health surveys, election duty and anything the local government wants.

Then there are ATMA workers who are taking over the work of popularizing better farming techniques under the Agriculture Technology Management Agency; USHA's who are urban counterparts of ASHA's; Yashoda's or Mamata's, who are non-medical workers looking after women in labor or during delivery; gram rozgar sevaks, who work in implementing the MGNREGS; Krishak Sathi's, who help small indebted farmers. Even the contractual computer teachers who are training people in the new Adhar based network and the para-teachers in elementary schools are part of this growing class of ill-paid workers with no job security.

Over a lakh of this motley one-crore army held a two-day 'maha-padav' or sit-in at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, near the Parliament. They will try and meet the Prime Minister, and also various ministers under which their particular scheme functions.

An over-riding fear among the scheme workers is that their jobs are under threat. They never know when some scheme may be stopped, says Hemlata one of the organizers of the mahapadav.

"Why should essential functions of the government like health care delivery and education be run as time-bound schemes?" she asks.

The scheme workers will be pressing the case for a minimum wage of Rs.10,000 per month, social security coverage and regularization.

Work

Est. Number

Earning (per month)

Anganwadi workers, helpers

Nutrition for 0-6 yrs children and pregnant mothers

27.5 lakh

Rs.3000 for Worker

Rs.1500 for helper

Mid Day Meal Cooks

Making food in schools

27 lakh

Rs.1000 (10 months only)

ASHA

Healthcare of pregnant women; inst. delivery

8.5 lakh

Rs.400 to Rs.1200

Para Teachers

Teaching in ele. schools

7 lakh

Rs.3-4000

ATMA workers

Agriculture extension

3 lakh

Yashoda/Mamta

Non-medical hospital work

5 lakh

Rs.3000

Others

10-20 lakh


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Chinese delegation visit Tihar Jail

NEW DELHI: An eight-member Chinese delegation led by the vice minister for justice Zhang Sujun visited Tihar Jail on Monday to survey the facilities in Asia's biggest prison complex.

The delegation members were briefed by the director-general (prisons) Vimla Mehra about the various prisoners' reform initiatives taken in the past few years.

"The delegation visited the drug de-addiction centre program in central jail number 3 and were impressed with the drug detoxification program and drug rehabilitation program carried out in jail with the help of NGOs and UNODC, as eight percent inmates are drug addicts at the time of admission," said Tihar law officer and spokesperson Sunil Gupta.

The delegation also visited the library in the same sub-jail and were explained about the prisoner education program "Padho and Padhao."

"They even visited the kitchen in the jail and appreciated the quality of the food. We took them to the jail factory in sub-jail number 2 and they were impressed with the work culture of the factory where prisoners are extremely disciplined," added Gupta.

Tihar officials said that the delegation members expressed surprise that the jail was managing to continue reform measures despite managing more than double the number of sanctioned prisoners.

"Prison complex of New Delhi has excellent management, harmonious environment, and is a model for the corrections work in Asia," said Sujun.
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Man jumps before metro train, dies

NEW DELHI: A 22-year-old man committed suicide by jumping before a Delhi Metro train here, police said on Tuesday.

Deepak Kwatra, a resident of Jagatpuri in east Delhi, allegedly jumped on the tracks in east Delhi's Preet Vihar station around 11.50pm Monday.

"No suicide note was recovered. It is yet to be ascertained why he took the extreme step," said a police officer.

He had got a job with a private firm in Hauz Khas in south Delhi only four days ago, police said.


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Ponty Chadha's driver key witness

Written By Unknown on Senin, 26 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: Delhi Police claims it finally has an accurate count of the number of shots fired at the Chhatarpur shootout that claimed the lives of liquor baron Ponty Chadha and his brother Hardeep. It is Ponty's driver, Raj Dev, who has emerged as the main witness and has helped the cops establish the sequence of events, number of bullets fired and Sukhdev Singh Namdhari's role in the whole episode.

Police are certain that 18-20 rounds were fired; but Hardeep, Namdhari and Sachin Tyagi fired only about 15, and the cops are in a fix over this. "Hardeep fired eight rounds from his two pistols, while Namdhari fired three to five rounds. Tyagi fired three shots too. We are trying to find out who fired the other three to five rounds," said a top source, adding that Namdhari was with Ponty Chadha on November 16, too, a day before the shootout.

A highly placed source said Raj Dev, who drove Ponty's Land Cruiser that day, took cover behind the car's wheels when the firing started. Crime Branch says the Punjab Police PSOs of Hardeep had not entered the farmhouse when the firing had started.

Namdhari, sources said, has been changing his statement frequently and has denied having any motive to kill Hardeep; but he lied on purpose in the FIR he registered that he did not fire any shot. "Why did he carry a weapon to the farmhouse if there was no motive?" said a source.

The cops are also questioning another driver-Kamal-about the whole incident. "We have been told that he was not present with Ponty that day but he may give us some clue as we believe he knew about Namdhari's men coming to help Ponty to take possession of the farmhouse," said an officer.

While obtaining Namdhari's custody on Saturday, Delhi Police told the court that he had confessed to shooting at Hardeep with his licensed pistol - a .30 bore (prohibited) weapon - in 'self defence' when Hardeep pointed a gun at him.


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No slowdown for the big fat Indian wedding

NEW DELHI: Inflation might have burned a hole in the aam admi's pocket but the Indian wedding is as big and fat as ever. From exotic, freshly flown-in orchids to a "varmala" in Phuket, Delhiites are ready to spend crores for a unique idea, say wedding planners.

At 10,000 weddings a day over this weekend - in an auspicious three-day period from Saturday - Delhi's band-baja-baraat industry expectedly raked in the crores.

Elaborate theme props have been erected in playgrounds - it could be the beaches of Hawaii or a royal carriage - banquet halls are tasselled in customized colour schemes and the florists are working round-the-clock with blooms that might well compete with the bridal trousseau on the price tag. "Though the cost of importing goods has gone up, people don't mind paying for it. They still want the venue to be decorated with exotic flowers. This is the only industry which is untouched by inflation. It is business as usual,'' says Anil Tondon, owner of Cloud 9 Hospitality.

Wedding planners say costs have gone up by 25-30%, but their customers are ready to keep up, even shell out extra for the "once in a lifetime event". "The most common theme is a royal wedding or exotic flowers. People also ask for a Hawaiian theme for parties. From venues to caterers, the cost has gone up manifold but most people don't want to cut down on number of ceremonies or parties," says Ashima Malik, owner of Vivaha Wedding solutions.

While theme-based weddings are still in vogue, destination weddings are fast becoming popular. "Though people still plan a wedding in Indian cities like Goa and Jaipur, foreign destinations are now being preferred. It will cost almost the same if we take a group of people to Goa or Thailand. In fact, the hotels are cheaper and service is better,'' says Tenzin Ohasel of Exotic Indian Wedding, who has organized close to 20 destination weddings this year alone.

No trimming of guest list

With astrologers predicting a three-day-long auspicious period from Saturday to Monday, community halls, banquet halls, hotels and playgrounds in Delhi are booked chock-a-block. "I had three wedding invites for Sunday," says Aparna Singh, a professional, who chose to attend two in south Delhi.

Wedding planners say despite buffets going for up to Rs 7,000 a plate, hosts are not willing to trim the guest list . "It is a question of their status in the society. Also, due to social pressure, people are forced to invite a large gathering. A gathering of 500 people is minimum while it could go up to 1,000,'' said a wedding planner. Agrees Major Gupta, marketing head of Palm Court: "Inflation has had no impact on this industry. People are not cutting down on wedding expenditure."

From exotic flowers to expensive gifts for guests, people are spending a lot. In fact, the families ask for unique ideas to make the event a memorable one. From traditional themes to exotic one, there are ready to spend on a good idea.

New additions, say planners, are live music bands (upwards of Rs 30,000 a jig) and customized return gifts, not excluding gold trinkets. And then, there's the bride. "The most basic lehengas cost between Rs 25,000 and Rs 30,000. As brides want to be unique, they end up spending between Rs 60,000 and Rs 4 lakh or more for a one-of-its-kind dress,'' says Shweta Saxena, a fashion designer who specializes in customized wedding clothes.

To bless couple, log on to the wedsite

You no longer flip through wedding albums and play the CD at every family gathering. Couples are now setting up "wedsites" (wedding websites), chronicling their journey from singles to a couple through detailed photo narratives and updates. Plus, guests can sign an online guestbook and leave blessings as well.


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Head constable shot dead

NEW DELHI: A 49-year-old head constable was shot dead by unidentified assailants in a car while he was checking vehicles on the outskirts of the city on Monday morning, police said.

Head constable Ramkishan, a resident of Nangloi, managed to snatch one pistol from the attackers but they fired at him with another pistol, a senior police official said.

The incident took place at Jonty border in Kanjhawla at around 2:10am.

"A police team was conducting picket checking at the border. Ramkishan had stopped a car for checking. There were four persons inside the car.

"After frisking the two passengers in the rear seat, when he moved towards the driver side, the person sitting next to the driver fired at him," the official said.

He was rushed to Braham Shakti Hospital where he was declared brought dead, the official said.


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Delhi Police head constable shot dead in city outskirts

NEW DELHI: A 49-year-old Delhi Police head constable was shot dead by unidentified men in a car while he was checking vehicles on the outskirts of the city in early hours today.

Head constable Ramkishan, a resident of Nangloi, managed to snatch one pistol from the attackers but they fired at him with another pistol, a senior police official said.

The incident took place at Jonty border in Kanjhawla at around 2:10 AM. Ramkishan was on night duty along with three of his colleagues.

"A police team was conducting picket checking at the border. Ramkishan had stopped the car for checking. There were four persons inside the car.

"After frisking the two passengers in the rear seat, when he moved towards the driver side, the person sitting next to the driver fired at him," the official said.

The head constable was rushed to Braham Shakti Hospital where he was declared brought dead, the official said, adding that the four men escaped from the spot.

Ramkishan is survived by wife and two sons.


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Cop, airline staffer chargesheeted for 'human trafficking' racket

NEW DELHI: A Jet Airways employee, a Delhi police officer and an immigration officer have been charge sheeted for allegedly running a "human trafficking" racket.

The Special Cell of police filed the charge sheet in a court here against immigration officer Chaman Azhar, Jet Airways staff Manoj Sarpal and Police sub-inspector Naveen Chandra alias Rajiv, indicting them for allegedly facilitating travel of passengers on forged passports and immigration stamps.

The three have been accused of committing offences of cheating, forgery, criminal conspiracy, destruction of evidence under the Indian Penal Code and also offences under the Passports Act.

In its charge sheet filed in the court of chief metropolitan magistrate Vidya Parkash, the Special Cell said the fraud was detected after a woman Navdeep Kaur, also an accused in the case, travelling on Jet Airways flight to Toronto was deported from Brussels as she was found travelling on a fake passport.

Kaur was travelling on a passport issued in the name of one Asha Panigrahi, who told police during questioning that the fake passport was arranged by one Manveer, who had met her at Gurdwara Bangla Sahib here and proposed that he can arrange the passport for her for Rs 6 lakh.

The charge sheet said on March 28 last year, Manveer dropped her at IGI Airport where Manoj contacted her, gave her a passport in the name of Asha Panigrahi, carrying a Jet Airways security sticker and also a boarding pass.


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More alimony as husband gets a raise

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 25 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: An increment in a man's salary has proved beneficial for his estranged wife as a trial court raised the monthly maintenance for the woman by Rs 2,000.

Additional sessions judge Poonam A Bamba also asked the woman to provide the school fees receipts of their minor children to her husband, a government official, to let him have the expenses reimbursed from the government.

The sessions court ruling came on the woman's appeal against a September 2009 order of a magisterial court, which had asked her husband to pay her and their two minor children a maintenance of Rs 3,500 per month.

The court raised her maintenance to Rs 5,500 with effect from October 2010 on her plea that it was hard for her to maintain herself and her two children on a paltry sum of Rs 3,500 while her husband's salary had been raised to above Rs 38,000 from 2010.

During the argument, the man had refuted the claim of his estranged wife saying he was not earning as much as alleged by his wife but he can pay the educational expense of the children as they are reimbursed from his office. While opposing the woman's plea, her husband's counsel argued that there was no need to interfere with the magisterial court's order and that his client's wife was also running a shop and was earning from it. The court, however, rejected his argument.


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A people's assembly being organized in Delhi, puts common man to the fore

MUMBAI: Days after the winter session of the Parliament has kicked off, a number of grassroots workers and social organizations plan to come together at Jantar Mantar in Delhi from Monday, November 26 to highlight the voice of the common man.

The assembly co-planned by over 50 organisations over five days plans to draw up a people's charter in the wake of the 2014 General Elections in India. "We want to make it clear to parties that we will hold them accountable for not acting in this session and term of Parliament as well as ensure that people's issues find prominent space in their manifestos in 2014." stated the group. The manifesto which aims to outlines the concerns of the poor and marginalized will examine the scope of decentralized governance, fight sedition law and state repression which have emerged as major concerns in recent times and collectively put economic policies through the scanner.

The group will also advocate the speedy passage of bills and amendments which have been pending over the years, including the much-publicised Lokpal bill and lesser known but equally pertinent legislations pertaining to land acquisition, whisteblower protection, judicial accountability and grievance redresal.

It intends to study the role of the state towards providing Indian citizens social security benefits such as pension, health and education besides protecting rights of unorganized workers.

Such citizens' platforms are a significant contribution to the participatory democratic process and their voices must echo in the highest quarters. Their demands should encourage the Parliament to deliberate and speed up the passage of pending legislations.

The platform includes organizations such as Centre For Advocacy Research, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, Pension Parishad and National Alliance of Peoples Movments among others.


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UNESCO report: Stumbling blocks to universal primary education, repetition rates decline but dropout rates remain high

NEW DELHI: The latest edition of the Global Education Digest reveals the urgent need to address the high numbers of children repeating grades and leaving school before completing primary or lower secondary education. New data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation's ( UNESCO) Institute for Statistics (UIS) show that about 32.2 million primary pupils were held back a grade in 2010, and 31.2 million dropped out of school and may never return.

Entitled ' Opportunities Lost: The Impact of Grade Repetition and Early School Leaving,' the digest presents a wide range of UIS data and indicators to better identify the millions of children that are falling through the cracks in education systems and leaving school, often without being able to read or write. According to a press statement, the report is complemented by an online interactive tool allowing users to visualise repetition and dropout rates by grade in the region and country of their choice.

The greatest challenges to the completion of primary school are found in three regions - Sub-Saharan Africa, where 42% of pupils will leave school early, with about one in six leaving before grade 2; South and West Asia, where for every 100 pupils who start primary school, 33 will leave before the last grade; Latin America and the Caribbean, where 17% of pupils leave school before completing primary education.

The digest also highlights some potentially good news, namely that the global repetition rate has fallen by 7% between 2000 and 2010 even though there were more children in primary school, with enrollment rates rising by 6% during the same period. Yet, high repetition rates persist in many countries: every child starting school today in the Arab States, Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, risks repeating a year, or more.

In countries such as Burundi or Togo, a child starting school today can expect to spend two or three years repeating a primary grade. In the case of Burundi, if the resources spent on repeating a grade were instead invested in enrolling new pupils, the country's annual gross domestic product (GDP) could grow by 1.3%, according to the digest. Overall, it is estimated that each year of real education a child receives (not repeating a grade) could increase his/ her individual earnings by 10% and lift annual GDP globally by 0.37%.

In general, girls are less likely than boys to start school but boys are at greater risk of repeating grades and dropping out, according to the digest. The age of pupils can be another determining factor: under-age pupils are more likely to repeat a grade, while over-age pupils tend to leave school early. Yet, according to the data, the most important issues shaping educational opportunities are household wealth and location. In general, poor children living in rural areas are more likely than urban children from rich households to repeat grades and leave school before completing primary education and attaining basic foundational skills.

"We cannot afford to ignore these findings from both a moral and economic perspective," said Hendrik van der Pol, director, UIS. "The world has just a few short years to make good on the promise to fulfill every child's right to primary education by 2015. The data in the digest show that school systems are reaching more children but losing them due to inefficiencies, which lead to grade repetition and early school leaving. It is far more difficult and costly to reach children once they leave school than to address the barriers and bottlenecks in the systems," added Pol.

Regional findings:

* Sub-Saharan Africa - Steady progress but daunting challenges in providing educational opportunities for a growing school-age population. In 2010, 11.4 million pupils repeated a primary grade in sub-Saharan Africa, representing more than one-third of the global total. The regional repetition rate fell slightly, from 11% to 9% between 2000 and 2010, even though school systems have been straining to provide education to a growing school-age population. This progress is clearly seen at the national level. In 1999, 15 African countries had repetition rates exceeding 20%, compared to only six countries in 2009. The countries, which have reduced their repetition rates by more than 10% since 1999, are Cameroon, Congo, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mozambique and Rwanda. Repetition rates are 4% or lower in Ethiopia, Ghana, Mauritius, Niger and the United Republic of Tanzania. However, primary education repetition rates remain very high in Burundi (36%), Togo (23%), Chad (23%), Central African Republic (23%), and Congo (23%).

Many of the children repeating grades leave school before completing primary education. The region has the highest dropout rate, which rose from 40% to 42% between 1999 and 2009. This means that more than two in five children who start school will not reach the last grade of primary education.

Dropout rates are highest in Chad (72%), Uganda (68%) and Angola (68%), where more than two out of three children starting primary school are expected to leave before reaching the last grade.

In contrast, dropout rates are lowest in Mauritius (2%) and Botswana (7%).

* South and West Asia - Modest progress despite the demographic dividend. Across the region, about 9.1 million pupils in primary school repeated a grade in 2009. The situation is improving slightly. Between 2000 and 2010, the regional percentage of repeaters remained the same at about 5%, even though the number of students enrolled in primary education rose considerably. This modest progress is largely the result of improvements in four countries: Nepal, which reduced its repetition rate from 26% to 12% (between 1999 and 2009); Bhutan, where the rate fell from 14% to 6%; Iran, where the rate fell from 5% to 2%; and India, where a slight drop in the rate (from 4.3% to 3.5%) led to a significant reduction in the absolute number of pupils repeating a grade.

While primary school enrolment has risen over the past decade, growth in the school-age population has slowed considerably in the region. This represents an opportunity to not only widen access to primary education but to ensure that children complete it. However, the regional dropout rate remains high at 33% and has fallen by just two percentage points between 1999 and 2009.

The biggest changes occurred in: Pakistan, where the repetition rate rose from 30% to 38% between 2004 and 2009; Bhutan, which managed to reduce the rate from 18% to 9% between 1999 and 2009; and India, where the repetition rate fell by ten percentage points from 38% to 28% between 1999 and 2006.

* Latin America and the Caribbean - Policies yield results but high rates persist in some countries. Repetition and dropout rates remain high in some countries, but the region appears to be on the right track to meet Education for All goals. At the regional level, the repetition rate fell from 12% to 8% between 2000 and 2010. Moreover, the absolute number of pupils repeating a grade in primary school has fallen from 8.4 million to 5.4 million over this period. While this is partly due to a corresponding decline in primary enrolment, it also reflects the success of effective policy making, for instance. Repetition rates have fallen in most countries of the region since 1999. The greatest progress was made in Brazil (from 24% to 18% in 2006) and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (10% to 4%). However, rates have been rising in Nicaragua, from 5% to 11%, and to a lesser extent (two to four percentage points) in the Bahamas, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Suriname.

The Latin American and the Caribbean region have the third-highest regional dropout rate to the last grade of primary education at 17%. Yet, the situation has been improving over the past decade, especially in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, although rates remain within the range of 15% to 24%. The lowest rates (below 5%) are found in Argentina, Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico and Uruguay.

Nevertheless, high dropout rates persist in the following countries: Nicaragua, where 52% of pupils leave school without completing primary education. Guatemala, with a dropout rate of 35%, followed by Saint Kitts and Nevis (26%) and Honduras (24%).


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Two arrested for murdering colleague

NEW DELHI: Two youths were arrested for allegedly murdering their colleague, who had shared with others the mobile number of one of the accused's " girl friend" and had refused to work with them.

Hevbi Lal (24) and Devender (20) were arrested yesterday for the murder of Rajpal who was working at a screen printing unit in the capital.

Rajpal was found murdered near Asaf Ali Road in Shastri Park of central Delhi on Friday morning, police said.

During its probe, the police found that the victim had met his colleagues Hevbi Lal, Devender and Vijali Paswan on the night of November 22 and consumed alcohol with them.

Devender and Lal were subsequently questioned and during interrogation they confessed to have killed Rajpal in connivance with Paswan, police said.

Giving details of the motive behind the murder Additional Commissioner of Police (Central), Devesh Chandra Srivastava said, "Hevbi Lal used to talk to a woman (Bhabhiji) and boast of his conversations with his friends. Rajpal secretly took the number from the mobile phone of Lal and started talking to the woman, and also distributed the number to his other friends."

"Rajpal also divulged to the woman that Lal was married and had two children, due to which she stopped talking to him," Srivastava said.

On the other hand, Devender and Paswan took several orders from the market expecting that Rajpal would lend a hand to them, however, Rajpal refused to cooperate saying he had other works to do, the police officer said.

"After this, the trio called Rajpal to a place and killed him after having alcohol," he said.


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Indian gay rights parade demands greater tolerance

NEW DELHI: Hundreds of gay rights activists marched through New Delhi on Sunday to demand that they be allowed to lead lives of dignity in India's deeply conservative society.

Dozens of demonstrators carried a nearly 15-meter (50-foot) -long, rainbow-colored banner and waved placards demanding that the government extend the scope of anti-discrimination laws to schools, workplaces and public and private spaces.

Activists said that three years after the Delhi High Court made changes in India's colonial-era law that made gay sex a crime, homosexuals are still not socially accepted in India.

In 2009, the court decriminalized gay sex, which until then had been punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Conservative groups have asked India's top court to overturn the lower court's order, and Supreme Court judges are currently hearing opinions from a range of people, including conservative groups and gay rights activists. It's unclear when the court will make a ruling.

"If only the Supreme Court comes out on our side, and if gay marriage became legal, what could be better," said Zorian Cross, a New Delhi-based theater actor and playwright at the parade.

"Queer and loving it" and "Give us your support" read some of the placards carried by the activists as they marched to the beat of traditional drums and music. Other supporters distributed badges and rainbow-colored flags and scarves.

The march ended in a public meeting at Jantar Mantar, the main area for protests in the heart of the capital. Many gay rights group members and their families danced and sang as drummers and musicians performed.

Vimal Kumar, an activist with the National Alliance of People's Movements, said the government had to ensure that all forms of discrimination against gays, lesbians and transgenders are ended.

"The government has to listen. Our struggle has gone on for very long, and we are hopeful the government will listen and act on our demands," Kumar said.

Gay rights activists are demanding that the government allow people to record the gender of their choice in the national census, voter identity cards and all other government documents.

"We are demanding that all people be allowed to exercise their right to live their lives with dignity and freedom, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation," said a statement issued by rights groups at the parade.

Kumar said people's attitudes were gradually beginning to change and there was greater understanding among families in urban areas as television campaigns and gay parade marches caught on. But the pace of change is slow, he said.

In some big cities, homosexuality is slowly gaining acceptance, and a few high-profile Bollywood films have dealt with gay issues.

Still, many marchers Sunday covered their faces with scarves or wore masks because they have not told their friends and families about their sexuality.


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HC rejects review petition against BRT

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 24 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Friday rejected a plea for review of its earlier verdict on the BRT corridor in south Delhi. A bench of judges Pradeep Nandrajog and Manmohan Singh accepted Delhi government's argument that the court should dismiss the review petition as the petitioner NGO never raised the ground of BRT violating Master Plan 2021 in its main PIL, but had raked up the issue in the review petition.

"Suffice would it be to state that in the writ petition, there is no challenge that BRT corridor does not conform to the Master Plan norms and thus, we think that petitioner cannot even attempt to urge anything with reference to the MPD norms being violated," the bench observed.

The review petition, filed by NGO Nyay Bhoomi through its President B B Sharan, had argued that "MPD 2021 is a statutory plan and has the force of law". As per the Master Plan, the BRT cannot exist on a road less than 45 metres in width.

While rejecting the NGO's arguments the bench pointed out that as per MPD 2021, apart from national highways, arterial roads of two kinds - primary and other primary are conceived of, and lastly sub-arterial roads and local streets. The plan contemplates BRT corridors on primary roads having 'ROW' meaning Right of Way, 30 metres and above and BRT corridors on other primary roads having ROW 45 - 60 metres. Thus, HC clarified, issues pertaining to

BRT corridors have to be decided not with reference to the width of a road but with reference to the span of a 'Right of Way'. HC in its decision on Friday also modified the previous order saying due to a typographical error got inadvertently mentioned that the BRT corridor in question is on a road width whereof was 45 metres equal to 100 feet. "The figure 100 is a typographic mistake and should read 150 feet."

While dismissing the PIL earlier, the high court had said, "There being no scope to expand the width of the existing roads and the population of Delhi continuously being on rise, we see no escape from the fact that the citizens of Delhi have to, one day or the other, use public transport.

"On said reason also, it cannot be said implementation of BRT corridors in the city of Delhi is an irrational decision," the court had said.

According to Nyay Bhoomi's plea, for smooth traffic flow on the corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand, the government should not restrain any vehicle from plying on the bus lane.

The petitioner had pointed out that most of the time the bus lane remains free while cars and other vehicles get stuck in jams for hours. with the situation on other lanes, meant for cars and other vehicles, remaining chaotic and the people getting stuck in jams for hours.


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Take your winter pick at trade fair

NEW DELHI: Kashmiri woolens and pure honey; dates, roasted nuts, and dried apricots from Iran; microfibre quilts and bedcovers from Hong Kong; hot chocolate from Belgium — the ongoing trade fair has something to satiate every winter need.

Young, college students make a beeline at the stall run by artisans from Kashmir, draping shawls of different colours and patterns around themselves. The stall, run by a family from Srinagar, offers a range of shawls in pure wool, pashmina, silk, and blended fabrics, apart from exclusive pieces of kani weaving.

"Kani weaving is tedious, and each shawl takes over a year to make. These shawls are also very expensive — starting at Rs 35,000 for a basic one and can go up to over a lakh," says Mohammad Rafi, an exhibitor at the Indian Handicrafts pavilion.

The overwhelming crowd at the Jammu & Kashmir pavilion proves the popularity of Kashmiri fashion at the trade fair. Stalls are lined with an extensive display of woolen jackets, shawls, and suit pieces typical of Kashmir. "We have pieces with special embroidery from Kashmir, and they are cheaper as we're selling them minus the middleman," says Shahmanzoor, Neelam Arts. Few stalls are also selling poshish — handmade woolen tweed — jackets, coats, overcoats, and even by the metre.

The international stalls, too, have a lot to offer, whether its pashmina from Nepal or microfibre and silk quilts from Hong Kong. "The quilts, bedcovers and bed sheets are of good quality and designs. We also have those with glitter, as well as fun ones like Angry Birds prints for children," says Ravish Kapoor, an exhibitor at the stall of Hong Kong based Aartex.

The winter chill brings with it a serious craving for nuts, dried fruits, and all things sweet. Iranian and Afghani stalls selling almonds, walnuts, dates, apricots, figs, pistachios, and cashews remain busy as customers sample their products and stock up for the weather ahead. "I am usually very conscious of what I eat, but I can't stop myself in winters!" says Payal Gulati, a third-year student of history, as she buys 'nutty nutri bars' made of dates, nuts, chocolate and apricot from a UAE stall.

"A lot of people are stocking up honey as well since it's beneficial in winters against cold or allergies," says Shahnawaz, an exhibitor from Srinagar, who is also selling a range of ready-to-eat wazwan items like rista, roganjosh, gustaba, and methi maaz.

Walk through the Kerala pavilion, and it's difficult to see beyond the multitude of people crowding stalls selling banana chips, coconut oil, rice and besan chips, and roasted chidwa. One of the stalls selling special "Kerala halwa" of different flavours — like strawberry, pineapple, dates, carrot, and jackfruit — is a special attraction as buyers grab chunks of fresh halwa. An exhibitor, asking customers to move "jaldi, jaldi" to accommodate the huge line, says the halwa can be stored for three months.


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Fake foreign admission: Man duped 25 aspirants, arrested

NEW DELHI: A man has been arrested for allegedly offering fake admission consultancy and promising at least 25 aspirants admission to top universities in New Zealand , Singapore, India, Spain, the UK and other EU nations. The accused, Peeyush Bharat Saini (43), a resident of Paschim Vihar, had initially asked them to pay between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 45 lakh for 'genuine' documents , but later said their admission had been cancelled 'on technical grounds' . Saini used to promise admission in MBBS/ MD/MS/MDS/engineering courses.

Saini was nabbed by the crime branch's anti-extortion cell. He had accepted money from a retired professor of Punjab University on the pretext of getting his grandson admitted in an MBBS course at Pune's Bhartiya Vidyapeeth. DCP, crime, SBS Tyagi, said Saini is from Roorkee's Teliwala. "He came here in 1993 for a diploma course in south Delhi but could not pass the exam. He then finished his graduation from Delhi University and started cheating innocent students assuring them admission in engineering diploma courses. In 1994, he set up shop at 5/11, Safdarjung Enclave and launched his racket," Tyagi said. Saini was booked for the first time in a cheating case in Sarojini Nagar in which he had allegedly accepted Rs 1.5 lakh for admission in an engineering course, he said.


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Fake foreign admission: Man duped 25 aspirants, arrested

NEW DELHI: A man has been arrested for allegedly offering fake admission consultancy and promising at least 25 aspirants admission to top universities in New Zealand , Singapore, India, Spain, the UK and other EU nations. The accused, Peeyush Bharat Saini (43), a resident of Paschim Vihar, had initially asked them to pay between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 45 lakh for 'genuine' documents , but later said their admission had been cancelled 'on technical grounds' . Saini used to promise admission in MBBS/ MD/MS/MDS/engineering courses.

Saini was nabbed by the crime branch's anti-extortion cell. He had accepted money from a retired professor of Punjab University on the pretext of getting his grandson admitted in an MBBS course at Pune's Bhartiya Vidyapeeth. DCP, crime, SBS Tyagi, said Saini is from Roorkee's Teliwala. "He came here in 1993 for a diploma course in south Delhi but could not pass the exam. He then finished his graduation from Delhi University and started cheating innocent students assuring them admission in engineering diploma courses. In 1994, he set up shop at 5/11, Safdarjung Enclave and launched his racket," Tyagi said. Saini was booked for the first time in a cheating case in Sarojini Nagar in which he had allegedly accepted Rs 1.5 lakh for admission in an engineering course, he said.


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A Pakistani jazz musician in India

NEW DELHI: The 12-year-old walked on to the stage a little confounded. It was his first ever gig, and an obstinate stool refused to be adjusted to his height. If he sat, he couldn't reach the cymbals. If he stood, he couldn't work the pedals. And if that wasn't enough, he was to be playing with seasoned musicians like Junaid Jamshed of Vital Signs fame and guitarist Amir Zaki. The Karachi audience they were playing to, was also puzzled to see a child on stage with the people they had come to watch play.

Today Louis J Pinto, 37, is an established jazz musician in Pakistan and has been a regular feature in four seasons of Coke Studio. He has performed across continents, collaborated with local and international musicians, and has even started his own music show. That first gig did go well after all.

Refer to him by his formal name, and hardly anyone in Pakistan, or elsewhere, will know whom you are talking about. He is almost always referred to by the moniker "Gumby" - a claymation cartoon character's name that was given to him by a doting neighbour when he was barely a month old. The name has stuck since.

Having performed and collaborated with Pakistani bands like Vital Signs, Zeb and Haniya, Mekal Hassan Band and Noori, he turned his attention to production some three years ago. Most recently, he was in India to perform at the Jazz Utsav.

Gumby comes from a small Goan community in Karachi. Music became a part of everyday life with regular performances with the church choir in the local parish. Starting out, Gumby opted to drop out of school. The move wasn't very well received both by his peers and his mother. "I wanted to quit school and focus on my music in eighth grade. But my mother forced me to at least complete the tenth," says Gumby, who has now taken to mentoring young people in music. "When I started out, it was very difficult. People wouldn't tell you things or encourage you. I felt it was very important for me to give back," says Gumby, frequently digressing to his "life philosophy" through the conversation. "It is always about making money. People want their children to become doctors so that hey have a financially secure future. But what if I become a really bad doctor or an average lawyer? That's what I told my mother initially when I wanted to drop out. If it's about money, I can make money out of this, though it is just a by-product of me following my hobby," recalls Gumby.

Though the bands he has collaborated with until now play pop and rock, Gumby says jazz dominates his sound. "I started out listening to a lot of popular music. Everything from Cliff Richards to The Beatles - that's what my mom would listen to on the phonograph. I started exploring a lot of western classical, a lot of Mozart. Slowly I got introduced to jazz - Dizzy Gillespie and Coltraine and stuff, and started understanding the choice of notes. I realized these people were playing all of improvised stuff, which was fascinating for me. Most of the pop music that I started producing would be very influenced by the improvised material that I would do in my leisure time. That's when I realized that it would be wrong of me to shun the jazz side of things, because in the back of my head, that's what was playing," says Gumby, who admits to getting a lot of ideas for his music while cleaning his house.

Talking of Pakistani jazz, though, Gumby says it still lacks a distinct sound that it can call its own. Besides Amir Zaki, he can name hardly two other people who play the genre. "At the end of the day, you need to put food on the table and if a certain kind of music doesn't help you do that then you revert to doing more popular stuff," says Gumby, who has also composed a few advertising jingles.

Pakistani singers like Junaid Jamshed, with whom Gumby performed the very first time, and more recently, Shiraz Uppal, have given up their musical careers for religion. A number of Muslim artists have been targeted in the Swat region as the Taliban is intolerant of music and performing arts. They find it "un-Islamic". Coupled with that, the mistreatment of religious minorities in the country that has recently come to light, one wonders if things are all that easy. "It hasn't affected me, really. Unlike the rest of the country, Karachi is very diverse, ethnically. You have Parsis, Hindus and Christians there. And of course, the Muslims. You can distinctly tell who is who and they all live in little pockets. Some of them are liberal, some of them aren't. But they all learn to live together. In my community, music, theatre or dance is a part of the culture. It was just very normal for us to play music," says Gumby, who among the Indian artistes, appreciates the likes of A R Rahman, Kailash Kher and Indian Ocean.

On his visit to India, he was most excited about his trip to Goa - his native city that he would see after a gap of 26 years. Having crossed the border on foot, it was an even more surreal feeling for him. "That's how they must have done it in 1947, isn't it?" he says.

For now, he is busy with a production of a couple of pop albums in Pakistan and the creation of a new online portal for the arts. "It is an academic portal...sort of like ebay meets public forum kind of format. People will be able to access localized information about the arts - any kind of art - through that online portal. It's nearly done and is coming along well," says Gumby. One will have to wait to see how it clicks.


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HC rejects review plea on BRT order

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 23 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court today rejected a plea for review of its earlier order dismissing a petition for scrapping a bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor in South Delhi.

A bench of justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Manmohan Singh accepted Delhi government's argument that the court should dismiss the review petition as the petitioner NGO in its main petition did not raise the averment that the corridor was violative of Master Plan of Delhi 2021 (MPD).

"Suffice would it be to state that in the writ petition, there is no challenge that DRT corridor does not conform to the Master Plan norms and thus, we think that petitioner cannot even attempt to urge anything with reference to the MPD norms being violated," the bench said.

The review petition, filed by NGO Nyay Bhoomi through its President B B Sharan, said, "MPD 2021 is a statutory plan and has the force of law. As per the master plan, the BRT cannot exist on a road less than 45 metres in width.

"Under the master plan of Delhi 2012, BRT is conceived on the road segment where the total width of road is 45 metres and above. However, this court has inadvertently computed 45 metre equal to 100 feet, whereas 45 meters comes to be about 150 feet...

The court today modified its order, saying it was a typographical error and corrected the figure to 100 feet from 150 feet.

While dismissing the PIL earlier, the high court had said, "There being no scope to expand the width of the existing roads and the population of Delhi continuously being on rise, we see no escape from the fact that the citizens of Delhi have to, one day or the other, use public transport.

"On said reason also, it cannot be said implementation of BRT corridors in the city of Delhi is an irrational decision," the court had said.

According to Nyay Bhoomi's plea, for smooth traffic flow on the corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand, the government should not restrain any vehicle from plying on the bus lane.

The petitioner had pointed out that most of the time the bus lane remains free with the situation on other lanes, meant for cars and other vehicles, remaining chaotic and the people getting stuck in jams for hours.


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NTPC project at Darlipali in Orissa to take off

NEW DELHI: The construction work of NTPC's Darlipali project is expected to commence soon following assurance from the state government that land acquisition shall be completed by December 10.

NTPC chairman Arup Roy Choudhury, Bhel chairman B.P. Rao and N.N. Misra, NTPC director (Operations) met Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday to discuss issues delaying the commencement of the project.

NTPC is expected to invest Rs 1,1400 crore on the 1600 MW project. NTPC at present has two projects in Orissa, the Talcher Thermal ( 460 MW) and Talcher Kaniha ( 3000 MW).

Situated at the Sundargarh District of Orissa, the Darlipali project is to get coal from Dulanga Mine and water from Hirakud Reservoir. The equipment for the plant has been placed with BHEL and BGR - Hitachi. The forest clearance for the Dulanga mine is also expected shortly.


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Govt weighs higher annual cap on subsidised LPG cylinders

NEW DELHI: The government is looking into demands for raising the 6-cylinder annual cap on supply of subsidised cooking gas refills to each household, Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily told the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Friday.

The government had on September 13 decided to restrict the supply of subsidised cylinders of 14.2-kg each to households in a year. Any requirement beyond this number had to be purchased at market rates which are more than double the subsidised price of Rs 410.50 per refill in Delhi.

"Representations have been received to revise the annual cap, which are being looked into,"" Moily said in the written reply. He said any requirement beyond the six subsidised cylinders are currently being priced at Rs 895.50 per 14.2-kg bottle in Delhi.

Following the decision, the oil companies are weeding out consumers having multiple connections. They have generated a list of suspected customers who have multiple connections, he said adding customers have been asked to submit the Know-Your Customer (KYC) form to the LPG distributors to prove their genuineness.

So far, 1.08 million connections have been blocked and of these connections 241,000 have been surrendered, he said. ""Oil marketing companies have blocked 55,41,887 LPG connections during ongoing KYC drive, in an effort to stop diversion of subsidised domestic LPG.""

Moily said for the purpose of issue of subsidised LPG, a family is considered to be consisting of husband, wife, unmarried children and dependent parents living together in a dwelling unit having common kitchen.

Multiple LPG connections in different names at the same address and same-name-same-address have been allowed by converting them into market priced supplies, he added.

"The oil marketing companies (OMCs) are currently incurring under-recovery (loss) of Rs 478.50 per 14.2-kg subsidised domestic LPG cylinder," he said. The public sector OMCs incurred a revenue loss of Rs 138,541 crore on sale of diesel, PDS kerosene and domestic LPG at government controlled rates in 2011-12.

"The OMCs need to be compensated in order not only to maintain their financial health but also to allow them to generate resources for capital expenditure, modernisation and acquisition of assets for future growth," Moily said.


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Top artists display video art in the capital

NEW DELHI: Artists like Vivan Sundaram, Sonia Khurana, Sheba Chhachhi, Jitish Kallat, B M Kamath and Atul Bhalla among others have taken to video art and will exhibit their works in the capital.

Titled Video Wednesday II festival, the exhibition is being showcased from November 21-23 from 3:00 to 9:00 pm at Gallery Espace and has over 35 videos, ranging from the latest work of pioneering video artists who initiated the medium in the 90s to new works by emerging video practitioners.

From the 33 artists participating this year, many of the videos at the festival are being screened for the first time. Other participating artists include Baiju Parthan, Madhu D, Shaheen Ahmed and Abhishek Hazra. "Our intention is to give video an absolute primacy, to trace and share its different creative strains in India," says Gayatri Sinha, curator of the festival.

The idea behind the festival is to focus on video as an art form independent of others, to uncover its most recent explorations, to bring practitioners of the art together and to celebrate their work.

A very strong component this year is animation. "The quality of art used in the animation is very high. It may be inspired by the success of comics, animated films and Amar Chitra Katha, that has begun to reveal a new direction in Indian video art," says Neerah Kumar of Gallery Espace.


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Hero Moto to start exports to Latin America, Africa this fiscal

NEW DELHI: Nearly two years after its split from Japanese partner Honda, the Munjal family-run two-wheeler major Hero MotoCorp will start exporting its products to Africa and Latin America to expand its global footprint.

The exports will begin before the end of the ongoing fiscal, a top company official said.

The company, which has started selling products under its Hero brand after the break up of the erstwhile joint venture with Hero Honda, is already selling two-wheelers in Sri Lanka and Nepal. "By the end of this fiscal year, we would have entered a few markets in Africa and Latin America," Hero MotoCorp Senior Vice-President (Marketing & Sales) Anil Dua said.

Dua, however, did not specify the markets.

In September this year, Hero MotoCorp's Managing Director and CEO Pawan Munjal said the company would start assembly plants in Kenya and Nigeria as it looks to expand footprint in the global markets. Assembly operations in Kenya will kick off soon and the company had finalised a distributor there, he had said.

Asked about demand in the domestic market, Dua said, "The festive season has been good for the industry. Before it, there was an overall 5% decline but I would expect we have come to the positive territory post festive season."


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Cops pull boy out of marsh, to be rewarded

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 22 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: In a fascinating occurrence of policemen risking their lives to save a teenager from the jaws of certain death, three policemen displayed commendable presence of mind and courage to rescue a teenager who was on the verge of drowning in quicksand on the Yamuna banks in Wazirabad on Tuesday evening.

The team of three policemen comprises assistant sub-inspector Rambir, head constable Prem Chand and constable Rohit. They carried out a dramatic operation using bamboos to reach and rescue the youngster. The boy is under observation in AIIMS Trauma Center and has not given police his statement yet.

Narrating the incident, Addl DCP Satveer Katara said that they received a call around 7.10 pm about a boy drowning in the Yamuna near Wazirabad Chhatth puja ghat. When the PCR van reached the spot, they did not spot anyone at first sight. After a search, however, they found a 'head-like object' in the marshy land in the ghat area at some distance. A closer look showed it to be the head of a boy neck-deep in the quicksand. But they could not help him right away as there was a risk of them meeting the same fate.

There was also no time to ask for fire tenders or reinforcement as rough calculations indicated he would drown any moment. The men began to look around for help and spotted a Chhatth pandal made of bamboos nearby.

"The three took a quick decision and began to collect bamboos from the nearby puja marquee one by one. They made a platform of these in order to reach the drowning boy. One of them took great risk and walked on the bamboos and with great difficulty caught hold of the neck of the boy. He pulled him out and he was found to have fainted. The staff rushed him to a nearby hospital and his life was saved," Katara said.

Katara said that the men will be suitably rewarded for their zeal to save a life without caring for their own. "They have set a precedent in the organization," he said.


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37 more dengue cases reported

NEW DELHI: Thirty-seven fresh dengue cases were reported in the capital on Wednesday, taking the tally for this season to 1,799. So far, four persons have died in the capital due to dengue. South Delhi Municipal Corporation reported the maximum number of 696 cases, while 591 cases were detected from the North corporation area, and 455 from the East corporation. Other cases were reported from NDMC and Delhi Cantonment areas.
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Stephen's bars Life of Pi star Suraj Sharma from taking exams

NEW DELHI: Days before 'Life of Pi' hits theatres in India, Suraj Sharma, the 19-year-old star of the movie and a first-year philosophy student at St Stephen's College, may not know whether to celebrate the film's release or mourn the fact that he has been denied an admit card to take his semester exams.

Sharma has already missed the first test — Hindi — and will miss the entire exam if Delhi University doesn't issue him an admit card before Friday, when both his next exam and the India release of 'Life of Pi' are scheduled. While filming was completed before Sharma started college, he had missed classes while touring to promote the film.

Sharma's case, however, is different from that of fellow Stephanian, Unmukt Chand, captain of India's under-19 World Cup winning team who wasn't allowed to sit for his exams because he was short of attendance. Sharma was asked to submit written assignments for the classes he would be missing.

Principal Valson Thampu said Sharma had not submitted any assignment. "We made the effort to go the extra mile and evolve this scheme, which is internal to the college and not something DU approves of. But for me to grant attendance, I must see the written work in my file," Thampu said.

Suraj Sharma has been refused permission to take his semester exam for "not meeting the prescribed attendance requirement", which is 66.6%. His attendance record — according to Thampu, about 47% — is much healthier than that of Unmukt Chand.

Sharma had taken a year off from school to prepare for the film and still secured a 94% in the board exam and joined the college on merit. Apparently, he even made efforts to work out a touring schedule that would overlap, at least to some extent, with holidays.

If he is not allowed to write the exams, Sharma stands to lose an entire year as he'll have to take admission into the same semester he had failed to complete.

"He was part of an international production and that is not a small thing. But I consider myself dutybound to ensure that such a scheme is not belittled," Thampu said. "He met me today and I asked him for copies of the tutorials but he says he'd written them and lost all of them."

As for granting Sharma the attendance and admit card, he repeats what he had maintained during the Unmukt Chand controversy — that the "discretionary power" is not with him.


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Survey to identify illegal shrines in Delhi

DELHI: The Delhi government on Wednesday decided to conduct a survey for identifying illegal religious structures on roads, parks and other public places in the city. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting presided over by the chief minister. The revenue department will conduct the survey and prepare a list of structures.
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1996 Lajpat Nagar blasts: Delhi court commutes terrorist's death sentence

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Thursday commuted to life term the death sentence awarded to a Jammu Kashmir Islamic Front (JKIF) terrorist in connection with the 1996 Lajpat Nagar blast case.

The high court also acquitted two others in the case who had also been awarded death, while upholding the life term awarded to a fourth convict.

The verdict came on an appeal filed by the four convicts.

The 1996 Lajpat Nagar blasts had killed 13 people.


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Probe against south corporation commissioner

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 21 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: Councillors are up in arms against the South Delhi Municipal Corporation commissioner Manish Gupta for reportedly violating his eligibility to use public funds. An inquiry has been ordered against Gupta for using an allowance of Rs 1.25 lakh for setting up Camp Office Facilities even though he was reportedly not eligible for it.

The Delhi government has approved Rs 1.25 lakh as allowance for IAS and DANICS officers, but as Gupta was posted as additional commissioner on deputation to the erstwhile MCD in 2011, as per Section 89 of the DMC Act he was not eligible to use this fund.

"Why should the corporation bear this expense? The officer should get the camp facilities reimbursed by the Delhi government. Even if this money had been given to him then, it should have been first presenting before the House and only after its approval should it have gone into his account," said Farhad Suri, leader of the Opposition.

However, Gupta claimed that the allowance doesn't need to be passed by the House. "I haven't done anything wrong and the inquiry report will prove me right," Gupta said.


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More grants for released prisoners

NEW DELHI: The state government has announced double rehabilitation grants to released prisoners and an additional amount of Rs 5,000 to women prisoners on their release.

"The CM made an observation that the rehabilitation grant for a released prisoner should be revised during a sentence review meeting. Consequently, we received an order from the state government for the same," said Tihar law officer and spokesperson Sunil Gupta. The quantum of the rehabilitation grant would depend upon the period of incarceration.

The CM had instructed the home department to review the existing rehabilitation grant in view of the present inflationary trend. "After due consideration the CM decided to effect 100% hike in the existing rehabilitation grant. Further, women prisoners would be given and additional amount of Rs 5,000 as a token of affirmative consideration to them," said a senior government official.

The prisoners released after an incarceration period of six months to five years would be paid grant of Rs 30,000 while those in jail for five to 10 years would been entitled to Rs 40,000 grant, said officials. The grant would be Rs 50,000 for those imprisoned for more than 10 years.


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Rajouri double murder: Family friend arrested

NEW DELHI: Police claimed to have solved the Rajouri double murder case with the arrest of a 46-year-old man. Cops said the accused Darshan Singh was a family friend of the victims — 78-year-old Swaran Kaur and her daughter Balbir Kaur (48).

Officials said the double murder took place on November 6 after the women refused to hand over their cash box to the accused.

According to V Renganathan, additional CP (west), during interrogation Darshan disclosed that he has been serving as a sewadar in a Gurudwara at Subhash Nagar. Darshan became close to the family through Swaran's sons, Devender and Dayal. He developed intimacy with the family on the pretext of bringing a marriage proposal for Dayal . On this pretext, he started visiting the house.

"On the day of the murder (Nov 6) the accused visited the Kaurs' house and came out along with Devender. After some time, Darshan again went to the house and asked for some money as loan from Swaran. He demanded Rs 2,000. Swaran took out currency notes and when Darshan saw that there was more money he asked for all the cash. When she refused, the accused then tried to snatch the money," police said.

During this altercation, Swaran caught hold of Darshan's beard. The accused inflicted fist blows on Swaran and when she fell down he smothered her. After some time, he opened the door as Balbir was knocking the door and was raising hue and cry. "As soon as Balbir entered the room, he overpowered her and after that smothered her also. After killing both the women, he poured mustard oil on both the bodies and put some polythene papers and set both the dead bodies on fire. He looted their bangles and Rs 23,000 from Swaran. All the items have been recovered,'' said Renganathan.

The accused Darshan hails from Hastinapur near Meerut in UP.


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Elderly woman crushed by truck

New Delhi: A 65-year-old woman was crushed to death by a speeding truck here, police said Wednesday. The truck has been impounded but the driver managed to flee.

Natthi Devi, who worked as a maid in west Delhi's Jahangirpuri, was crushed by the truck while crossing a road in the area.

The driver fled from the spot leaving the truck, said a police officer, adding that a case regarding rash and negligent driving causing death has been registered and a hunt is on to apprehend the driver.

The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital where she was declared brought dead.


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Youth stabbed in Delhi for Rs.5

NEW DELHI: A 22-year-old youth was stabbed by unidentified assailants in the capital after a heated argument over Rs.5, police said Wednesday.

Rahul was stabbed in the Nand Nagari area of the city while he was returning home late Tuesday.

Passers-by informed the police about the incident after which the victim was rushed to hospital. His condition is stated to be stable, police said.

A case has been registered against the attackers and a hunt is on to nab them.


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Ponty Chadha's guards arrested for entering disputed farmhouse before shootout

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 20 November 2012 | 22.10

NEW DELHI: Four guards of Ponty Chadha were arrested here for allegedly entering a disputed farmhouse in south Delhi and thrashing men there on Saturday hours before the liquor baron was killed on the same spot, police said.

The four men were among a group of people who entered the farmhouse in Chhattarpur on Saturday morning, beat up men of Ponty's younger brother Hardeep, with whom the liquor baron had a dispute, and threw them out.

"We have placed them under arrest. A case of trespass, hurt, dacoity and abduction were registered earlier in connection with this incident," a senior police official said.

This incident had preceded the shootout later in the farmhouse in which Ponty and Hardeep were killed.

Ponty's men had on Saturday morning entered Chhattarpur farmhouse, beat up some of Hardeep's men, took away their mobile phones, confined them and threw out some others.

Tension was brewing between Ponty and his brother Hardeep for a couple of days before their killing.


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Seminar and Exhibition on "Black Taj: Myth and Manifestation" at Jamia

NEW DELHI: The Faculty of Architecture & Ekistics at Jamia Millia Islamia is going to organize a seminar and exhibition on "Black Taj: Myths and Manifestation" from November 21 to 24, 2012.

The press statement released by the university says the event is an ""attempt to explore the knowledge gap on the subject of the Black Taj Mahal."" It also says that along with the Black Taj, ""various aspects of the art, architecture, sociology and brand image of the Taj Mahal will be presented in new light via lectures, forum, exhibition and documentaries.""

The highlight of the exhibition is the miniature model of black Taj Mahal awarded by the President of India in 1996. The Inauguration of the exhibition is scheduled for November 21, 2012 at 11 am at M.F. Hussain Art Gallery, Jamia Millia Islamia. Karan Singh, president, ICCR will be the chief guest of the inaugural programme, Max Claudet, director, Institute Francais will be guest of honour and Lt. Gen. (Retd.) M.A. Zaki, Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia will preside over the programme.

The exhibition will be on display, all day, on November 22 and there will be a panel discussion on ""Heritage Interpretation of Taj Mahal and Issues"" at 11 am and a lecture on ""Art Appreciation of Taj Mahal."


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Delhi madrassas open to allowing special training centres

NEW DELHI: General education is welcome, as long as the regular madrassa schedule is not disturbed. The Universal Elementary Education Mission (UEE-Mission), may just find several such institutions submitting proposals for Special Training Centres meant to facilitate the mainstreaming of out-of-schools kids.

A survey conducted through the Urdu Academy about two year ago, says Maulana Ata-ur-Rehman, heading Shah Waliullah Institute, found that the city has about 250 madrassas and about four times as many maqtabas. Subjects other than the Quran, such as Urdu and Persian, are taught in madrassas; only Arabic Quran is taught at maqtabas. In the absence of a madrassa board in Delhi, the UEE-Mission (responsible for implementing Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan) had to "treat the madrassas as NGOs" and seek proposals for centres from them.

"Such initiatives will only benefit students," observes Mufti Mukarram, Shahi Imam of Fatehpuri Masjid. Within its walls runs one of the oldest madrassas in the city - the Madrassa-i-Alia - and the only one that's under the Waqf Board. "As long as there's no disturbance to the madrassa's curriculum and syllabus, it's a welcome move," he says. Study hours are short, 7.30 am to 12 or 12.30 pm, and there will be time for other activities. However, only about 20% of the students are within the age bracket covered by the scheme - six to 14. "There's no age bar here and students as old as 18 or 20 coming here can be placed in the starting classes," he says.

"This in not exactly a new scheme," Mujtaba Farooq, executive member, All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat, points out, "The government already has a " madrassa modernization scheme" which officers facilities such as English, Maths, Science and computer-teaching to madrassas that opt for it. There is another for vocational training. Plus, the image of madrassas - that they don't offer contemporary education - is a result of a communication gap. But people will welcome this and should."

Even newer madrassas may choose to join in. Jamia Mahmood-ul-Madaaris, a madrassalocated in Masuri, near Ghaziabad, has over 1,000 students enrolled with it. "Many of the students who come here are drop-outs from regular schools," explains founder Maulana Khalid, "Parents send them here thinking since their kids are not getting regular education, they may as well receive religious instruction and become better human beings. A centre imparting general education can only help us."

Atyab Siddiqui, vice president, Delhi Education Society, is less optimistic. The hiccups, he feels, will be in the implementation especially considering the optional nature of the scheme. "I have a lurking suspicion that there won't be many institutions responding to this as it's not mandatory," he says. "Implementation can be a problem," he continues, "But our community needs a new thought process, inquisitiveness and a more scientific temperament."
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