Narendra Modi attacks Sheila Dikshit at Delhi rally

NEW DELHI: BJP's poster boy and PM candidate Narendra Modi mounted a frontal attack on chief minister Sheila Dikshit and her government on Sunday. Addressing a huge rally at Japanese Park in Rohini, Modi mocked Sheila by calling her a "ribbon-cutting" chief minister who shrugs off responsibility by putting blame on other agencies. And without mincing words, he went on to call her government as one "suffering from work-related paralysis", and a "sharabi (drunkard) addicted to corruption and totally drenched in it".

Modi, who reached the venue at 12pm upon landing at a nearby helipad, lost no time in ridiculing Dikshit. "Sometimes I think if there is a happiest chief minister in our country, then it is the Delhi chief minister. From morning to evening, she has no work to do except for cutting ribbons. She does not have to worry about a host of issues that her counterparts in other states have to take care of, but still she fails to fulfil her responsibilities," said Modi.

The Gujarat CM cornered the Congress-led Delhi government on various issues, including alleged corruption in Commonwealth Games in 2010, power and infrastructure, and Nirbhaya gang rape. The attack, in fact, started with the Nirbhaya incident. "When cases like Nirbhaya happen, then this chief minister (Dikshit) comes out with advisories, saying that 'being a mother of a daughter I suggest women should not step out late in the evening'. She should not forget that she is not just a mother but chief minister of a state and she cannot get away by saying this," said Modi.

Shifting his focus to corruption, Modi said Dikshit and her government touched new heights of corruption during CWG. "Our loss due to CWG was not just monetary but also of pride and reputation. When other countries like South Korea and China were given the opportunity to host international games, they made a global mark. We, too, had an opportunity to show our strength to the world, but under Congress rule we lost that chance completely," said Modi.

He next attacked Dikshit on her failure to generate power from plants like Bawana despite spending crores of money on their construction. "Just imagine there are power cuts in the country's capital city. Even the Prime Minister's house has a generator back-up. Despite having plants with huge production capacity, the government cannot give ample power supply; not because there is no coal but due to lack of vision and foresight. All you need is a willingness to make them functional," Modi added.

He also questioned the existence of departments like agriculture, irrigation or animal husbandry, which do not hold much relevance in an urban place like Delhi. "She does not have to worry about irrigation nor the problems of the fishermen. And if there are any potholes on the roads of Delhi, she puts the responsibility on the municipal corporation. If there is a law and order problem, she just has to say the police forces in Delhi function under the central government. She does not have any responsibility," Modi said.

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M C Misra may be next director of AIIMS

NEW DELHI: Dr M C Misra, chief of the AIIMS trauma centre, is tipped to be the next director of AIIMS. Sources said that the institute body of AIIMS that is headed by Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has forwarded his named to the PMO from among the five shortlisted candidates.

Four other candidates in the fray whose names were shortlisted by the search-cum-selection committee

were Dr Y K Gupta, HOD pharmacology, Dr VK Paul, HOD paediatrics, Dr Balram Airon, head of cardio-thoracic and vascular surgery and Dr S K Acharya, HOD gastroenterology.The institute had advertised its post for the director two months ago, and 70 applications were recieved for the post from doctors based in India and abroad.

The current AIIMS' director, Dr RC Deka's tenure will end on September 30.

The PMO will declare the name of the new director after making necessary verifications, said the health ministry officials. Misra was not available for comment.

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DDA courts disaster, plans to cut Yamuna zone by 40%

NEW DELHI: In a move environmentalists have called disastrous, the Delhi Development Authority has issued a public notice seeking to reduce the city's zone O — comprising Yamuna and the river front — by as much as 40% to pave the way for the regularization of various illegal settlements and constructions in this belt.

The controversial notification, put up on Saturday, plans to "rezone" about 3,109 hectares out of the 8,070 ha-zone. Environmentalists said the move amounted to tampering with the river's ecology. In a strong letter, ironically sent on World Rivers Day (Sunday), they urged Lt Governor Najeeb Jung to intervene.

DDA said rezoning was necessary because residents of unauthorized colonies and villages such as Meethapur and Jaitpur were not able to reconstruct or repair their buildings since there is a total embargo on any construction in zone O. Residents of zone O were also deprived of facilities such as schools, dispensaries and community halls, the DDA said.

Along with the unauthorized colonies, the proposal plans to exclude areas such as Akshardham temple, Shastri Park and Commonwealth Games village from the current river zone.

The draft public notice has been uploaded on the DDA website. Citizens can raise objections and give suggestions on the proposed modifications within 45 days from Saturday.

The letter to the L-G, written by members of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan (YJA), says, "Effectively, what the DDA is proposing is to slice off (close to) 50% of the existing area under the river zone in the city for inclusion into adjoining developmental zones. This is most audacious, incredulous and unacceptable as it is not only against the interest of the river Yamuna and the city but also is illegal, irregular and based on a very flimsy excuse."

YJA convenor Manoj Misra said the public notice was illegal. "Any proposed change in the integrity of the river zone would require prior approval from the Yamuna Standing Committee in the central water commission; Delhi Urban Art Commission, which is a statutory planning body for the NCT of Delhi; Prime Minister-appointed Yamuna River Development Authority and an environmental clearance from the competent authority. From what we know, none of this has been procured."

But these are not the only issues with the public notice. Misra pointed to another discrepancy — the total river zone area quoted in the notice is 8,070 ha as against 9,700 ha which has been the size of the zone O since the very first master plan. "DDA has chosen to carry the figure of 8,070 ha without providing any explanation as to where the remaining 1,700 ha has disappeared?" Misra observed.

A reduction in the size of the river zone will have a serious impact on groundwater recharge, ability to deal with floods, drainage system in the city and fragile river ecology. Himanshu Thakkar of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People said the move was absolutely unacceptable.

"Such a change will kill the river Yamuna. This is the government's attempt to legalize illegal encroachments such as the Akshardham temple, Millennium bus depot and others. It's such an irony that we are getting the public notice on World Rivers Day which shows our attitude toward rivers and water bodies. Making such a plan without a proper environmental impact assessment is beyond imagination."

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Pamphlets dub Gujarat CM ‘feku’

NEW DELHI: As the BJP was all geared up for Narendra Modi's rally, a pre-emptive tirade against the Gujarat leader was launched with pamphlets, dubbing him 'feku' , circulated through newspapers.

The pamphlets and hoardings mocking Modi's visit to city as 'Aaya Aaya Feku Aaya' , compared development parameters of Gujarat and Delhi and put the latter way ahead. These posters did not mention name of any political party.

The BJP blamed the Congress and alleged this "mischief" has a set a bad example for political culture. Former BJP president Nitin Gadkari said, "It is sad to see the way members of Congress have put up posters against our leader Narendra Modi. It is a matter to ponder what sort of political culture we are setting up. This sort of behaviour is not good for democracy."

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One more held in cash van heist

NEW DELHI: The third accused in the ATM cash van robbery in Karol Bagh was arrested, three days after the two main culprits were nabbed with the looted amount of Rs 49 lakh. Satender (24) alias Chotu was arrested from Etah on Saturday . "We placed a team of officers at Etah and places around it to nab Chotu," said Alok Kumar, DCP west-district . On Wednesday, a driver and his two accomplices had driven away an ATM cash van.

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Gandhi Nagar rape: Doctors depose in court

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Saturday examined three government hospital doctors who had treated and took out some foreign objects from the body of a five-year-old girl raped allegedly by two youths here.

Additional sessions judge Sanjay Garg recorded the statements of prosecution witnesses, Dr Sunita Fotedar, Dr Shefali and the chief medical officer of Swami Dayanand Hospital, Dr Manish Gupta.

Accused Manoj Shah and Pradeep Kumar, now in judicial custody, are accused of raping the girl on April 15 in Gandhi Nagar area in east Delhi. The child was rescued 40 hours later on April 17.

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Woman gets 10-year jail for trafficking

NEW DELHI: Expressing serious concern over the rising "menace" of human trafficking in the country, a trial court has urged Delhi Police to make "sincere efforts" to crack its whip on perpetrators of this trade.

The court made these observations while sentencing a woman to jail for 10 years for forcing a girl into prostitution after she was trafficked to the capital from a village in West Bengal. "The menace of human trafficking is on the rise and needs to be curbed. It requires sincere efforts by the police, failing which many other victims of human trafficking are likely to meet the same fate, as the victim in the present case," said additional sessions judge Kaveri Baweja while convicting Padma under sections of Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act and wrongfully confining or keeping an abducted person.

While holding Padma guilty, the court pulled up the police for failing to arrest two men, who allegedly brought the victim from her native village in West Bengal to the capital in 2010. "It may also be pertinent to mention that as per the chargesheet, no efforts appear to have been made by the investigating agency to apprehend the two boys, who allegedly brought the victim to Delhi from her native village in West Bengal," the court said.

While directing that a copy of the order be sent to the DCP, the court directed him to "look into the matter and ensure that officials functioning under him make all possible endeavours to apprehend offenders who get away by committing this heinous crime of human trafficking". It also sought a compliance report on the same from the police.

The girl was rescued from a brothel on GB Road after a raid on August 6, 2010. The raid was conducted after the victim's mother lodged a case. NGO Shakti Vahini was also called to the spot and the complaint of the victim was recorded.

Even as the convict sought leniency, the court trashed her plea saying, "the convict, in total disregard for the dignity of the victim, subjected her to forceful sexual intercourse and compelled her to do the work of prostitution against her will...The allegations do not, in my opinion, call for any kind of leniency towards her," the judge said.

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Maharani Bagh building to go for fraction of cost

NEW DELHI: A new six-storey building on 10.75 acres of government-owned prime land in upscale Maharani Bagh is set to slip into the hands of a private company for a fraction of its value, aided by a lop-sided public-private partnership (PPP).

The generous terms of the contract, which give a Kolkata-based firm use of the building on land valued at around Rs 3,000 crore for 21 years, are part of an agreement concluded in April 2003 with the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB). The PPP agreement for the land — owned by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) — was signed when IGIB was headed by Samir Brahmachari, who currently heads CSIR.

As in-charge of IGIB, Brahmachari negotiated an agreement with Chatterjee Management Services (CMS) to set up Centre of Genomic Application (TGCA) at the building, which is at the centre of the controversy. Unusually, the agreement gave the private player the right to use the building for 21 years if the project, for any reason, became unviable. This clause is now likely to deliver the premises to CMS as the TCGA activities were suspended since 2011 after the project began incurring losses.

On visiting the site, TOI found the building is lying vacant. A block next door is buzzing with action, but not the building with Application Genomics facade. As per the agreement — a copy is with TOI — IGIB was to provide land for the TGCA building and install equipment, while the private partner provided capital for its construction as well as recurring costs. In a sharp indictment, the CAG found the PPP agreement, drawn by IGIB under CSIR, to favour CMS.

TOI tried to contract CMS through email and phone, but could not get response.

But Brahmachari, who is now DG, CSIR, defends the agreement saying it was lauded as a "best practice" in the field of science. "Ownership of land still belongs to CSIR and it can buy back the building on payment of its book value to the private partner," he told TOI.

The DG blamed 'vested interests' backed by multi-national companies led to audit and inquiries which forced closure of the project. The CAG report tabled in Parliament, however, notes "due diligence" in the process of selecting private partner was not done and IGIB entered into agreement without waiting for the consultant's (E&Y) report, which was hired by the Institute itself.

"The agreement drawn up with the private partner favoured the later and did not have adequate provisions for safeguarding government interests," the CAG said.

Brahmachari disagreed with auditor's finding, saying CSIR never opts for tender or inviting bids in a scientific project. Arguing that the auditor ignored the performance of TCGA and benefits of a world class genomic facility, the DG lambasted CAG, saying auditors are generally graduates who don't understand science.

According to the total outlay of Rs 26.05 crore of the project, the government's share (major equipment) was Rs 13.55 crore, and private contribution (building construction and equipment) was Rs 12.50 crore. But, the cost of land to be provided by CSIR for the proposed building was not included in total plan outlay, the report said.

After CAG report and complaints of irregularities, the issue has reached the Prime Minister's Office as senior CPM leader Sitaram Yechury has written two letters demanding a CBI probe.

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Tunda sent to 3-day police custody

NEW DELHI: A trial court on Saturday remanded suspected LeT bomb expert Abdul Karim Tunda in three-day police custody in connection with a 1997 blast case in which a woman was killed and several others were injured.

Tunda, who was in police custody till Saturday in connection with a separate bomb blast case, was produced before chief metropolitan magistrate Amit Bansal, and special cellsought his three-day custodial interrogation. The police said a bomb had exploded at Bidan Pura, Delhi on October 26, 1997 resulting in the death of a woman. During the search, another live bomb was recovered and it was then defused. Various people, including some Pakistani and Bangladeshis, were held during the probe and they had disclosed about their involvements in various terror strikes in the country.

Two of the arrested accused, Mohd Amir Khan and Mohd Shakeel, had disclosed about their role in the 1997 blast and had also said that they had taken training of preparing bomb from Tunda, the special cell said.

This is the fourth case lodged against Tunda in which the police has taken his police custody.

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Owners want bus in which Delhi student was gang-raped back on road

NEW DELHI: Pleading that livelihoods depend on it, owners of the white-coloured bus with black-tinted windows, in which the 23-year-old student was gang-raped on the night of December 16 last year, want it back on the roads.

With a Delhi court pronouncing death for the four accused, the family of the bus owner, who is behind bars for submitting forged documents to get the vehicle's registration certificate, wants it back.

The bus, with Yadav Travels painted on its body in bold, is currently parked outside the Saket police station in south Delhi. Most of its windows are smashed and the tyres have gone flat. The interiors are filled of cobwebs and dust. The once yellow curtains and red seats have turned black with dirt and grime.

"We want the bus back. It was unfortunate that the gang rape took place inside it. But the livelihood of Dinesh's wife and two daughters depends on the bus," an uncle of Dinesh Yadav, who did not wish to be named, told IANS. Dinesh Yadav is the owner of the bus and is behind bars for forging its registration certificate.

"As the trial in the case is over, we will apply to the court to get back the bus," the relative said. The relative said they will soon apply to the district court in Saket to seek its return.

The bus with registration number DL 1PC 0149 was traced a few hours after the gang rape from south Delhi's RK Puram area. It was parked outside Ravi Das Camp where four of the six accused stayed. Police got a lead to the bus from CCTV pictures taken from a hotel in Mehrauli situated along the road. The bus had passed the road twice, raising the police's suspicions and helping in making the arrests.

Yadav's wife said she and her daughters' survival was getting tougher by the day as all their 11 buses have been impounded due to fake registrations. "As the gang rape case has ended, we hope now we will get our vehicle back," said Yadav's wife, who did not reveal her name.

This IANS correspondent met the family members when they had come to attend Yadav's bail hearing on Sep 23.

Yadav, 35, was arrested from his residence in Rasoolpur Nawada village near Noida on Jan 2. He had allegedly given a false affidavit about his residential address to get the bus registered with the transport authority at Burari in north Delhi.

Police had registered the case against Yadav under Sections 420 (cheating) and 181 (false statement on oath to public servant) of the Indian Penal Code. His filing a false affidavit came to light during probe into the gang rape, said police.

Police while verifying the address of the bus owner realized that Yadav, who lived in Noida, had 11 buses registered in his name at the address H No 11/11, Gali No. 12, Kamal Pur, Burari, Delhi.

During investigations, it was found that Yadav had given wrong address for registration of all his buses.

According to a police officer, the owners can get back the bus as 'case property' on "superdari", under which they have to give an undertaking that they will produce the bus in court whenever required.

The trainee physiotherapist and her male friend boarded the bus at Munirka bus stand. The woman was brutally gang-raped by six males, including a minor, during the 45 minute ordeal after which the couple was dumped naked and bleeding on the road in Mehrauli. The woman died of her injuries after 13 days in a Singapore hospital, where she was airlifted for specialised treatment.

Of the six accused, the juvenile has been sent to a remand home for three years, the maximum sentence permissible under the law, while four others have been sentenced to death Sep 13. One accused was found dead in Delhi's Tihar Jail.

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Delhi gets sports medicine lab

NEW DELHI: A first-of-its-kind sports medicine lab was inaugurated at Safdarjung Sports Injury Centre on Friday. It boasts of an arthro-simulator—a machine for "training orthopaedic surgeons in arthroscopy on machines rather than live patients", among others.

Dr Deepak Chaudhary, director of the sports injury centre, said they are in the process of a super-specialty course in sports medicine soon. "We are waiting for an approval from the Medical Council of India to start the course," said Chaudhary. He said that in the last four years, since the sports injury centre was started, they have conducted close to 4,000 surgeries.
"Our patients include top national and international sportspersons as well as paramilitary personnel," he added.

The centre offers treatment for various sports injuries like runners knee, tennis elbow, broken bone and torn ligament. "There are few specialized doctors in sports medicine in the country. Other than the short-term courses in sports medicine at Patiala, the country does not even have any special training facility for this field of medicine," said a senior doctor.

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Youth jailed for rape bid on niece

NEW DELHI: Observing that his act was "most despicable" and that he had "scant regard" for the safety of the minor, a trial court has sentenced a 22-year-old youth to five years of rigorous imprisonment for trying to sexually assault his three-year-old niece.

Additional sessions judge Dharmesh Sharma also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on convict Rajesh Shah, a resident of Delhi, after holding him guilty under the provisions of Protection of
Children from Sexual Offences ( POCSO) Act.

Shah was arrested for trying to sexually assault his niece on February 3 this year after he was caught by complainant Rahul Jain who heard the cries of the child when he was parking his car in Inderpuri area.

"It is really unconscionable that the convict attempted to sexually violate the girl child taking advantage of his closeness and relation with the family of his brother. The convict had scant regard for the safety and health of the girl child," the court said.

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Gurgaon expressway toll operator refutes NHAI's allegation of under-reporting traffic

NEW DELHI: The private concessionaire for Gurgaon expressway has refuted the NHAI's allegation of the company under-reporting traffic at the 32-lane toll plaza. NHAI, in its notice served to the company Delhi-Gurgaon Super Connectivity Ltd (DGSCL), has alleged that this practice has caused huge loss to the public exchequer.

In a statement issued on Friday, DGSCL said, "We completely refute the traffic numbers that have been presented by KPMG through their manual counting process. It appears that KMPG has not done any traffic count study but has only presented the figures provided to them by a third party vendor which is a security services company. No expert market research and/or survey agencies that specialize in such tasks had been employed to do such verifications."

It added that the KPMG report mentions they are not responsible for the manual counting data that their vendor has provided and that they have yet to do the analysis and that since the work is incomplete their comments may change at a later date. "We are surprised that KPMG did not discuss the study with us nor use the computerized counting and classification systems that are already in place at the toll plaza and instead have relied on some manual counting figures provided to them by a third party vendor, which is prone to human error," it said.

DGSCL said its toll plazas are equipped with the most advanced Automatic Vehicle Classification and Counting ( AVCC) systems and these are installed in each lane including the split toll plazas. "The system is completely computerized and there is no scope for any human error or intervention," it added.

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Four held for attacking chemist

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Road secretary wins Gymkhana poll

NEW DELHI: Union road transport and highways secretary Vijay Chhibber won the coveted president's post in Gymkhana Club on early Saturday morning. He defeated his nearest rival former chief of R&AW A S Dulat by over 280 votes in a four-cornered election that took place on Friday evening.

The second ever woman candidate for this post Urmila Gupta, a retired Indian Information Services officer, came third in the contest while former director general of police B L Vohra finished fourth.

According to club members, this year recorded a maximum turn out of at least 2,200 votes. The club has about 5,600 voting members while the total number of member stands close to 12,000.

The club election in every two years becomes talk of the city because of its high profile members that includes several top serving and retired bureaucrats, defence officials and political leaders.

This year's election attracted maximum criticism as the candidates'supporters threw several cocktail parties and resorting to smear campaign against each other.

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JNU hosts Kashmir film festival

NEW DELHI: Aamir Bashir's Harud, Sanjay Kak's Jashn-e-Azadi, M K Raina's Man Faqiri and the late Mani Kaul's Before My Eyes will be screened in a Kashmir film festival at the Jawaharlal Nehru University from Sept 27-29.

Around 18-20 films (documentaries, shorts and features) are part of this festival categorised into themes like nationalist discourse, exile and displacement, freedom, women in conflict, Kashmiriyat and marginalisation. Other films to be screened include NVK Murthy's Diary of an Aggression, Zul Vellani's Aatish-e-Chinar, Ajay Raina's Tell Them The Tree They Had Planted Has Now Grown, Apour Ti Yapour, Na Jang Na Aman and Yeti Chu Talukpeth. Also there's Siddhartha Gigoo's The Last Day and Rajesh S Jala's 23 Winters and Floating Lamp In A Shadow Valley.

"The aim of the three-day festival is to celebrate all aspects of Kashmir -- social, historical, political and psychological. There's also a section on photographs, book readings and panel discussions," says Siddhartha Gigoo, one of the curators of the festival.

All cinema halls have shut down in Kashmir. Yet films are being made in the conflict-ridden Valley. "Professional and amateur filmmakers are making films and taking these films to the audiences across the world. There are stories to narrate. And in all these films the endeavour is to place the people of Kashmir at the forefront: their stories, what they have lost during the years of conflict and how their lives stand impacted," says Gigoo.

Under the category of women in conflict, there are films like Atul and Shabnam Ara's Waiting, Iffat Fatima's Where Have You Hidden My Crescent Moon and Sonia Jabbar's Autumn's Final Country.

Other interesting films to be screened are Pankaj Rishi Kumar's Pather Chu Zaeri, Ashwin Kumar's Inshallah Kashmir and Musa Sayeed's Valley of Saints.

While the festival has gone to different cities and many academic institutions in India with support from Films Division, Mumbai, the Delhi edition is being hosted by The School of Arts and Aesthetics and The Center for English Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University ( JNU).

Interestingly, there are no Bollywood films on Kashmir in the festival. According to Gigoo, the purpose of the festival is to present Kashmir through films by Kashmiris and non-Kashmiri filmmakers. "However, the films should be on Kashmir. Certainly not the Bollywoodised representation of Kashmir which is one of houseboats, shikaras, picture postcard natural beauty and song and dance sequences. The films in this festival are about Kashmir as it stands today and Kashmir of the last two decades," says Gigoo.

"The films in the festival are real stories as never presented in Bollywood movies; they are human stories of trauma, pain, longing, hope, waiting, alienation, subjugation and love," he says.

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Modi rally: Target 5 lakh, BJP to distribute pamphlets at mosques, malls in Delhi

NEW DELHI: Burdened with the job of mobilizing at least five lakh people for Narendra Modi's rally on Sunday, BJP workers are trying innovative ways to draw crowds.

Party workers have not only been asked to mobilize people but also make sufficient arrangements for their travel and meals.

On Friday, members of party's minority morcha will distribute pamphlets outside 100 mosques in the capital. In the backdrop of Modi's image after 2002 Gujarat riots, BJP workers have been told to ensure a visible representation of the Muslim community in the rally to help the prime ministerial candidate put up a secular face. The minority morcha has promised to arrange for at least 25,000 minority faces.

On Thursday, BJP held a meeting to check the status of all the morchas and districts to get an estimate of people expected in the rally. "The response is overwhelming. We are expecting over five lakh people," said Vijay Goel, Delhi BJP president.

To assert Modi's popularity amongst the youth, the Yuva Morcha is taking out bike rallies across the city. They are reaching out to people outside malls and Metro stations and are working in collaboration with the party's student wing-ABVP. "Our workers are inviting all DU professors," said a youth wing worker.

The Mahila Morcha has been targeting housewives through door-to-door campaigning, jagrans and even kitty parties. "Modi is popular amongst women. There is a lot of excitement amongst them to join the rally. We are hoping that atleast 25% of the crowd would be women," said Shikha Rai, party's Delhi general secretary who is also managing the women wing.

The women wing has also roped in NGOs working on women issues to mobilise more women candidates for the rally.

Besides party workers are holding prabhat feris,(a religious term used to refer to a group of religious people who take rounds in the area to mobiles people) in their respective areas for last 15 days to mobilise workers for the rally.

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Delhi CM invited to Modi's rally on Sunday

NEW DELHI: The Delhi BJP has invited chief minister Sheila Dikshit to attend Narendra Modi's 'Vikas rally' on September 29. Sources said that the invite was sent through an email. "Attending Modiji's rally will also help her understand his model of development which is talked about everywhere," said Vijender Gupta, convener of the rally arrangements.

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1984 riots: Police to provide protection to 3 witnesses

NEW DELHI: A week after the Delhi high court order, the Delhi Legal Services Authority (DLSA) on Friday asked police to provide 24-hour security to three witnesses in 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases involving senior Congress leader Sajjan Kumar.

D S Punia, member secretary of DLSA, directed Delhi Police Commissioner to provide security to prosecution witnesses Sheela Kaur, Popri Kaur and Joginder Singh after they expressed apprehension of threats. A CBI report was also filed subsequently.

Secretary is the nodal officer appointed by the high court earlier in a similar matter till the enactment of new legislation on the issue. The nodal officer also asked other six witnesses to appear before him on October 10.

On September 18, a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana had referred the matter to DLSA while hearing a PIL for direction to provide protection to the witnesses in 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases.

The bench had asked senior advocate H S Phoolka, counsel for petitioner, to approach the DLSA.

A PIL was filed in the high court by 'November 1984 Carnage Justice Committee' for a direction to Delhi and Punjab governments to provide security to the witnesses during the pendency of the cases before the trial court.

Citing a list of witnesses in two anti-Sikh riot cases, the PIL said, "Despite various judgements and orders passed by various courts, including the high court and the apex court, to the effect that the witnesses should not be allowed to come under pressure of the accused and that it is the duty of the government to provide adequate protection to the witnesses, the respondents have failed to abide by the same."

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Depressed over wife's death, man ends life

GHAZIABAD: A 47-year-old man committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his residence in Vaishali area here.

Police said that Padam Jeet took the extreme step due to depression after his wife and daughter reportedly died of cancer a few years ago.

A suicide note has been recovered, police said.

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'Idea wasn't to close restaurants'

Jayashree Nandi

NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal made it clear on Tuesday that the "idea was not to close down restaurants" but to strike a balance, making sure that the establishments follow regulations and do not discharge untreated waste water into sewers.

The courtroom was packed with restaurant owners who kept pleading with the bench to allow them to reopen their restaurants. The bench reserved its decision for Wednesday and assured restaurant owners that they will "speed up" the process via an "early hearing".

While many restaurant owners were emotional and said the crackdown had hurt their trade and the livelihoods of their employees, the bench asked them to formally submit applications required to include them as party respondents in the case.

The member secretary of Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Sandeep Mishra, who was summoned by the bench in the previous hearing, made a detailed submission on the status of enforcement of the policy for restaurants and hotels. He said approximately 20,000 restaurants were running in the city out of which only 122 had been given show cause notices and 32 served closure orders. Strangely, DPCC did not have data on how many restaurants had obtained its mandatory consent. DPCC's policy for restaurants and hotels was released in October 2012.

The bench said its interim order of closing all restaurants will remain in force and directed DPCC to inspect the eateries during the day to ascertain which of them have installed ETPs. "In some of these restaurants, meals cost up to Rs 5,000. For an ETP they have to pay barely Rs 1-2 lakh," Mishra observed. He also argued that the excuse that restaurants don't have space doesn't hold because ETPs can now be improvised and made to fit in a small space.

On Tuesday, all the restaurant owners who were present said they had either made purchase orders for ETPs or were planning on installing one. Two of them had already applied for DPCC's consent for operation on Monday.

The bench also directed that South Delhi Municipal Corporation, Commissioner of Police and Delhi Jal Board be made party respondents in the case.

The National Green Tribunal on Friday had ordered all restaurants running without DPCC's consent to be closed till the next hearing on Tuesday. They were found to be discharging untreated waste water into the sewers and also drawing groundwater. The NGT had also said the order would act as an injunction against any new eating joint coming up in the area.

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Idea wasn't to close restaurants, National Green Tribunal says

NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal made it clear on Tuesday that the "idea was not to close down restaurants" but to strike a balance, making sure that the establishments follow regulations and do not discharge untreated waste water into sewers.

The courtroom was packed with restaurant owners who kept pleading with the bench to allow them to reopen their restaurants. The bench reserved its decision for Wednesday and assured restaurant owners that they will "speed up" the process via an "early hearing".

While many restaurant owners were emotional and said the crackdown had hurt their trade and the livelihoods of their employees, the bench asked them to formally submit applications required to include them as party respondents in the case.

The member secretary of Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Sandeep Mishra, who was summoned by the bench in the previous hearing, made a detailed submission on the status of enforcement of the policy for restaurants and hotels. He said approximately 20,000 restaurants were running in the city out of which only 122 had been given show cause notices and 32 served closure orders. Strangely, DPCC did not have data on how many restaurants had obtained its mandatory consent. DPCC's policy for restaurants and hotels was released in October 2012.

The bench said its interim order of closing all restaurants will remain in force and directed DPCC to inspect the eateries during the day to ascertain which of them have installed ETPs. "In some of these restaurants, meals cost up to Rs 5,000. For an ETP they have to pay barely Rs 1-2 lakh," Mishra observed. He also argued that the excuse that restaurants don't have space doesn't hold because ETPs can now be improvised and made to fit in a small space.

On Tuesday, all the restaurant owners who were present said they had either made purchase orders for ETPs or were planning on installing one. Two of them had already applied for DPCC's consent for operation on Monday.

The bench also directed that South Delhi Municipal Corporation, Commissioner of Police and Delhi Jal Board be made party respondents in the case.

The National Green Tribunal on Friday had ordered all restaurants running without DPCC's consent to be closed till the next hearing on Tuesday. They were found to be discharging untreated waste water into the sewers and also drawing groundwater. The NGT had also said the order would act as an injunction against any new eating joint coming up in the area.

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Filthy flows Yamuna despite the vows

Jayashree Nandi

NEW DELHI: If the Congress government's performance were measured on the yardstick of urban ecology, it would fail miserably at least on one count-the Yamuna.

Despite repeated promises of cleaning up, the river's condition has been deteriorating by the day. However, the issue is not entirely of pollution-the flow of water in the Delhi stretch of the river is not adequate.

Most of the natural river water is retained by the three barrages along the river for irrigation, drinking water and industrial use. The rest that reaches Delhi can hardly survive the amount of sewage and filth that the city dumps into it, and the natural riverine ecosystem is killed. But this issue was simply overlooked all these years.

The Congress government oversaw most of the Yamuna Action Plan-II which revolved around "cosmetic" improvements. The plan involved installing expensive sewage treatment plants (STPs) and expanding urban sewerage to keep waste water away. But a 2012 critique of the YAP by Massachusetts Institute of Technology International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) pointed out that a large number of cities and villages are not connected to sewerage infrastructure and therefore even the new STPs are unable to intercept all the waste. Also, STP capacity is inadequate to meet the waste from the rapidly increasing population and STPs have no reliable power supply, resulting in release of raw sewerage. And while industries are responsible for managing and treating their own waste, they often don't do so.

"No amount of effort will yield any results unless a minimum flow is maintained in the Yamuna. The government has failed to tackle the root cause. The big question is: where has all the money gone? Restoration of the river is integrally related to how water flow is brought to the city," says Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan. A lot of infrastructural changes have taken place, such as building of toilets to avoid open defecation, crematoriums and sewage treatment plants. "The toilets remain unused, STPs are running grossly under their capacity so the entire policy remains disconnected," adds Misra.

Himanshu Thakkar of South Asia Network of Rivers, Dams and People (SANDRP) says the performance of the government has been 'pathetic'. "The threats to the river have only increased in 15 years with more and more encroachment of the river floodplain and the ridge. The government has failed to implement rainwater harvesting or even manage the demand. The CM herself has accepted that they have failed in saving the river," he says.

The experience with air pollution has been slightly different. Delhi's air continues to be very highly polluted. The state ranked 30th this time among 35 states monitored by the Planning Commission as part of the Environment Performance Index (EPI), of which air quality is a significant indicator. Just by monitoring Delhi Pollution Control Committee's real-time ambient air quality data one can gather that Delhi is dangerously high on not just particulate matter (PM 10) and PM 2.5 levels but also newer pollutants like nitrous oxide (NOx), ozone, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon monoxide.

While Delhi is one of the few states that have started monitoring many parameters which has led people to recognize the impact of newer pollutants, it's far from monitoring 32 parameters, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs), that Europe monitors. Introduction of unleaded petrol (1998), reduction of sulphur content in diesel (2000), reduction of benzene content in fuels (2000) and introduction of compressed natural gas in 2001 were some of the policies that were implemented during the Congress tenure.

The CNG impact has long worn out. It has been replaced by a massive surge in diesel-run private vehicles for which the government doesn't seem to have any answers. Recently, the government planned to unveil its 'agenda for air pollution control' which aims to meet permissible air quality standards by 2017 through various control mechanisms. But impending elections probably stopped it from releasing it as many may see it as restrictive.

Despite the new fleet of buses and the Metro, public transport hasn't become easily accessible. "Most of our investment goes into making it comfortable for car owners who constitute just 14% of the population. The government hasn't worked on improving the reliability of the bus network, speed, feeder services and walkability in the city. It's difficult to deal with air pollution until there is an effort to make the city accessible," says Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, Centre for Science and Environment. Absence of restraints on car usage and low parking charges are among the main reasons for Delhi's failure to deal with air quality, she adds.

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Delhi govt's guidelines to schools to check dengue spread

NEWDELHI: In the wake of the spiralling cases of dengue in the national capital, Delhi government on Wednesday issued a circular to all schools here suggesting do's and don'ts for prevention of the disease including wearing of full-sleeve tops and trousers and salwars.

As per the guidelines mentioned in the circular, students should be instructed to wear full sleeve clothes and long trousers or salwars to cover hands and legs properly. They can also apply mosquito repellent on exposed parts of the body.

According to the circular, nails should be trimmed short once every week and hands washed with soap before consuming food.

All water coolers of schools must be cleaned properly every week and servicing of water filters to be installed in schools.

The circular directs checking of the expiry date of all packaged eatables and drinks before eating and also refraining from consuming water, milkshake and fruit juice, chat from roadside vendors.

The circular directs elimination of stagnant water in pits and flower pots in schools to control mosquito breeding, cleaning of water drainage, cleaning and covering of water tanks with properly-fitted lids, repairing leaked and damanged water pipelines along with regular cleaning of septic tanks and toilet blocks.

As per the circular, the Deputy Director of Education should ensure the compliance of these measures during the inspection of schools.

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Delhi govt's guidelines to schools to check dengue outbreak

NEWDELHI: In the wake of the spiralling cases of dengue in the national capital, Delhi government on Wednesday issued a circular to all schools here suggesting do's and don'ts for prevention of the disease including wearing of full-sleeve tops and trousers and salwars.

As per the guidelines mentioned in the circular, students should be instructed to wear full sleeve clothes and long trousers or salwars to cover hands and legs properly. They can also apply mosquito repellent on exposed parts of the body.

According to the circular, nails should be trimmed short once every week and hands washed with soap before consuming food.

All water coolers of schools must be cleaned properly every week and servicing of water filters to be installed in schools.

The circular directs checking of the expiry date of all packaged eatables and drinks before eating and also refraining from consuming water, milkshake and fruit juice, chat from roadside vendors.

The circular directs elimination of stagnant water in pits and flower pots in schools to control mosquito breeding, cleaning of water drainage, cleaning and covering of water tanks with properly-fitted lids, repairing leaked and damanged water pipelines along with regular cleaning of septic tanks and toilet blocks.

As per the circular, the Deputy Director of Education should ensure the compliance of these measures during the inspection of schools.

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Rivals allege ‘dirty tricks’ as Delhi Gymkhana polls turn ugly

NEW DELHI: Two of the four candidates contesting for the president's post at Gymkhana Club were seen dancing together last week. This may give an impression that the campaign for the top executive's post in the city's premier club has been 'friendly'. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Mudslinging is on through letters, claims and counter-claims. Meanwhile, scores of cocktail parties are being used to woo voting members at clubs and five-star hotels, some thrown by real estate and hotel tycoons. This year's election at the 100-year-old club is one of the most bitterly contested in memory.

Voting takes place on Friday. The voting members include the Prime Minister, vice-president, chief ministers and several Union ministers, besides the Who's Who of Delhi, including top serving and retired bureaucrats.

The Delhi Gymkhana election is already being marked for its many 'firsts'. This is the first time that as many as four candidates are in the fray - a serving secretary at the Centre (Vijay Chhibber), a retired R&AW chief (A S Dulat), a retired director-general of police (B L Vohra) and a retired deputy director general of Doordarshan ( Urmila Gupta). This is second time that a woman candidate is in the fray for the top post. If Gupta wins, she will be the club's first woman president.

Dulat is contesting again after having served as club president for two years (2005-07), which many club members say is against "convention". "If this time the president is chosen from armed forces, the next turn is for civil services. Though the resident is elected for one year, they are elected unopposed for the second year. No past president has contested again in normal circumstances," said Lt General Rajinder Singh.

All three opponents of the former R&AW chief talked about upholding traditions and values. Dulat, on his part, said his nomination was "well within the convention" and added that voting members were the best people to decide.

Rumours abound of rivals resorting to 'dirty tricks'. Barring Vohra, all other contestants told TOI their old " friends" were throwing evening parties to garner support. Parties have been hosted by a real estate giant and a big hotel owner. Members said party hoppers were availing the hospitality being offered by rival camps.

All candidates were also trying to flaunt their links with the defence forces. Gupta said she is expecting a majority of women members to vote for her.

Several members said the number of parties hosted before polls was very high this year because of the sheer number of people contesting for both executive committee membership and for president. The number of contestants for the executive committee, 34, is also the highest till date.

The club located next to 7 Race Course Road has a surplus of about Rs 70 crore in its kitty and has about 12,000 members, of which about 5,600 have voting rights. "It's a much hyped election. Everyday we are getting several letters, mails and SMSs, including invitations to cocktails. There has been sea change in the past two-three elections," said a retired IAS officer who is a voting member.

For a large section of members, the main issue in this election is to see who and how the club's infrastructure can be improved to meet growing demand. "If you reach the club about 6pm, you don't get a seat. We need to vote a person who can deliver on this front," said a retired Army officer.

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Missing file resurfaces in 20-year case, saves accused

NEW DELHI: In a strange twist to a 20-year-old case, a man acquitted of rape in 1994 was rearrested and put on trial as the file pertaining to the case had apparently gone missing. However, on the day the judge was going to pronounce the verdict, the "missing file" resurfaced, forcing the court to drop the proceedings, keeping with the legal principle — a man must not be put twice in peril for the same offence.

The discrepancy came to light in January when the Delhi high court encountered a PIL seeking the status of a 20-year-old rape case allegedly forgotten by the criminal justice delivery system as its file has been missing.

When attempts to find the "missing file" in the trial courts failed, a shocked HC directed a district and sessions judge to "reconstruct the records" of the matter related to the alleged rape of a 16-year-old girl in Connaught Place by accused Karan Pal in June 1993.

The matter reached trial court once again in April and the accused was taken into custody. After hearing the case for four months, the court of district and sessions judge reserved the matter for judgment. However, on the day of the the verdict, the "missing file" resurfaced. To everyone's surprise, not only was the rape case heard two decades ago by the then additional sessions judge, the accused had also been acquitted on October 18, 1994.

In its order, the court noted that the file was traced from the record room of Tis Hazari court complex and the case had been decided in October 1994. When the PIL was being heard in HC, a report of the Saket district judge had said the matter was disposed of on October 18, 1995, as per the court register but no record was found.

The confusion regarding the year in which the case was decided seems to be the possible reason for the file having remained "untraceable". While disposing of the matter, district and sessions judge I S Mehta said, "Once the original file has been received and all the accused have already been acquitted, no further trial is required."

The PIL in HC had created quite a stir, with the HC directing the trial court to initiate action against officers responsible for non-availability of files. It had also constituted a three-member panel to examine the practices and systems prevailing in connection with the custody, maintenance, handing over, taking over and disposal of judicial record.

Another controversy had erupted when the investigating officer told HC that the victim had informed him about a settlement with the accused after which the case was disposed of, prompting the bench to demand how a serious crime of rape could be compounded and settled.

The matter had come to HC after a lawyer had filed an RTI to find out the status of the case. In the reply, it was said the file had been misplaced while the matter was shown as active in police and court records.

The FIR lodged by the victim 20 years ago had alleged that the minor was lured by a home guard woman constable, Brahm Pali, and taken to her house while she was waiting in CP in June 1993. Pali's son allegedly raped the girl the next day and tried to get her married forcibly. She was rescued by two men when she raised an alarm in public. Later, her parents had lodged the FIR.

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Woman to vacate mother-in-law’s house

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court has restrained a woman, estranged from her husband, from taking possession of her mother-in-law's house located in south Delhi.

Accepting the plea of 54-year-old widow Kavita Chaudhri, Justice Jayanth Nath passed a decree in her favour as she claimed that the house in question was gifted to her by her father. The court restrained the daughter-in-law from taking possession of the house, saying, "daughter-in-law has no right to continue to reside in the suit property or to disturb the possession of the plaintiff's (Chaudhri) property in South Extension.

"There is no merit in the contentions of the daughter-in-law. Accordingly, a decree is passed in favour of Chaudhri," the court said.

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Delhi assembly elections: Promises galore, but transport reforms in Delhi crawl

NEW DELHI: Five years after the Congress government was voted back to power, projects announced to streamline transport-such as modernization of DTC (2009) or GPS in autorickshaws (2010)- are mired in paperwork.

Fund allocation for the sector - 20-25% on average - has been consistently high, though. While Rs 3,372 crore was set aside in 2012, this year the amount was Rs 3,876 crore. Yet, the projects are running late with some being dropped altogether. We take a look at some of the projects that have fallen by the wayside.

Digitization

In 2002, the government had decided to allocate Rs 827 lakh for digitization of records. Only 34 vehicles were registered in Delhi and the brief was simple: establishment of a wide area network (WAN) to connect all zonal authorities, two sub-offices and National Crime Records Bureau with a host computer at the department's headquarters. In 2010, this project was revived. But over a decade later, the project is not complete. Worse still, there is no data integration between traffic police and the department.

In the past few years, Rs 100-150 lakh has been allocated for computerization of records. Close to 1 lakh auto permits, including the recent ones, and 50,000-odd commercial permits have been issued, with the exception of taxis. The city, however, has over 73 lakh registered vehicles. That most drivers operate without valid licences is evident in the number of PSV badges issued, which comes to 86,566 (including DTC cluster buses, autorickshaws and Gramin Sewas among others). After the Nirbhaya gang rape, 5,294 drivers without PSV badges were booked. Of the 3,134 booked by traffic police, 3,235 were auto drivers, 608 taxi drivers and 157 chartered bus drivers. About 25 Gramin Sewa vehicles were also caught.

Without proper digitization, it is difficult to pin down rule violators. Challans issued by both the transport department and traffic police often don't reach the correct addresses, as data is never updated. Also, digitization cannot be fully utilized without the provision of e-payment of challans and taxes.

Computerization will include registration of commercial vehicles on a smart card, e-payment of permit/composition fee, online payment of road tax, various fees, fines and data retrieval linking with Delhi online portal, and networking of all zonal offices, the VIU (vehicle inspection unit) and ARU (autorickshaw unit) with the department headquarters. PSV driver badges will also be issued on smart cards.

DTC fleet modernization

Since 2010, the government has been talking about modernizing the aging DTC fleet by replacing the standard-floor buses with low and semi-low-floor buses. Around 2,000 of the 6,000 buses have been identified for scrapping. Every year, budgetary allocations have been made, accompanied by talk of purchasing low and semi-low-floor buses - funds from JNNURM as well as from the government's own coffers are available on paper. Yet, the dearth of resources for the corporatization of the public bus service has meant that DTC continues to use its old fleet to meet the city's demands. Frequent breakdowns and poor maintenance affect the bus service and frequency.

Privatization of buses

When the bus cluster scheme was launched in 2011, the government claimed it would get 11,000 buses to meet the city's transport needs, 60% of which would be part of the private bus cluster scheme and the rest would be met by DTC buses. In 2012, however, the erstwhile transport minister Arvinder Singh decided to change the ratio of cluster buses to 60-40, with DTC supplying the majority of buses. About 1,000 cluster buses were supposed to ply by December 2012 but the chief minister cited a lack of depot space in her 2013 speech. Only 500-odd buses have been made operational.

Enforcement

Manpower continues to be a problem. Even after the Nirbhaya case exposed lapses of the transport department, enforcement remains lax. A senior transport department official said, "We have 30 teams working in shifts, but sustained drives are not possible as 120 enforcement officials cannot keep a check on 60 lakh vehicles." Transport minister Ramakant Goswami had said that government was planning to increase the wing's strength to at least 1,000, but no one has been recruited.

GPS in autorickshaws

The project of installing GPS in autos within three months of the December 16 incident is yet to take off. While the new autos come equipped with GPS-based fare meters, the older ones are still to get the device. The auto unions remain opposed to the project. Moreover, the back-end operations, being managed by DIMTS, are yet to be shared with police, though talks are on. Also, drivers tampering with the GPS device have not been reined in. Goswami had said a drive to install GPS in commercial vehicles like Gramin Sewa would be launched "soon". The GPS was originally a permit condition for the Gramin Sewa service but that was never implemented.

PIS/ E-ticketing

The project was introduced during the Commonwealth Games when the government announced that new passenger information services (PIS) would be introduced in bus queue shelters. These PIS would give information on the schedule, route and timings of the buses at the stops. Funds were allocated for the project in 2011, with an aim to also include voice announcement systems inside buses besides e-ticketing. It remains on paper.

Monorail

A pilot monorail project was announced in east Delhi in 2012. The alignment is to go from Shastri Park to Trilokpuri. The project has been stuck for some time with several questions being raised about the alignment and cost by the finance department. The monorail, which will go through congested areas like Geeta Colony, Gandhi Nagar, Kailash Colony, Jheel Khurenji, Khureji Khas, Pandav Nagar and other neighbouring localities, will be the first such project in the country. Government officials say the DPR aims to wrap up by 2017 if work starts this year. The entire alignment for the monorail will be elevated and alongside roads that are mostly narrow.

Delhi Metro

As work on Phase III of Delhi Metro is carried out, the project emerges as the government's showpiece. Covering a large part of the city, Phase III will connect the existing network with far-flung areas like Mukundpur, Badli, Faridabad, Shiv Vihar and Kalindi Kunj. Two new lines are being constructed while two corridors are being extended.

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Nirbhaya case: HC issues production warrant to death row convicts

NEW DELHI: The Delhi HC issued production warrants for tomorrow to four death row convicts in the December 16 gang-rape and murder case on the trial court's reference for confirmation of the capital punishment given to them.

A bench of justices Reva Khetrapal and Pratibha Rani directed Tihar Jail authorities to produce Mukesh (26), Akshay Thakur (28), Pawan Gupta (19) and Vinay Sharma (20), before it tomorrow.

The order came on the submission of Dayan Krishnan, who has been re-appointed as special public prosecutor by the Delhi Police in the case, that this court can direct production of the convicts to know whether they are going to file an appeal against the trial court's judgement convicting and sentencing them in the case.

The prosecutor made his submission while answering a query of the bench as to how soon the court can hear the matter at length.

The court also asked the high court registry to prepare paper books for the parties in the matter.

On September 13 while awarding capital punishment to Mukesh, Akshay, Pawan and Vinay, Additional Sessions Judge Yogesh Khanna had referred the case to the high court for confirmation of the sentence.

The trial court has to refer each death penalty case to the high court for confirmation of the punishment.

The trial court had also granted 30 days time to the convicts to file their appeal before the high court.

The four convicts were awarded death sentence in the brutal gangrape case by the sessions court which said it fell in the rarest of rare category as the crime was committed against a 23-year-old "defenceless" girl in a "beastly" and "hair-raising" manner.

"Accordingly, the convicts be hanged by neck till they are dead," the trial court had said after noting that the inhuman and ghastly acts of the convicts shocked the collective conscience of the nation and deserves exemplary punishment.

Prime accused Ram Singh (34) was found dead in the cell in Tihar Jail in March and proceedings against him were abated. On August 31, the juvenile accused was convicted and sentenced to a maximum of three years in a reformation home.

On the night of December 16, last year, the paramedic student was gangraped in a moving bus in south Delhi after the convicts lured her and her 28-year-old male friend, who was also assaulted, on board the vehicle, which was later found to be plying illegally.

The victim's friend, a software engineer, suffered fractures in his limbs. The girl succumbed to her injuries on December 29, 2012 in a Singapore hospital.

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Long wait for trains on Blue line

NEW DELHI: With a waiting period of 8-15 minutes between trains during off-peak hours, the Dwarka Sector 21-Noida/Vaishali corridor may be getting more commuters, but services seem to be suffering.

Over the past few weeks, commuters have been complaining about the increased waiting time between trains. "The frequency is usually less than two minutes when I catch the train from Rajouri Garden in the morning. However, I have to wait much longer for a train around 3.30-4pm. On Wednesday, I waited for 15 minutes for a train to Noida," said Moushumi Samajdar, a regular passenger. Samajdar, who is a student, says the frequency has been going down especially over the past few weeks.

Others travelling on the corridor have also been complaining. The wait is the longest between 12.30-3.30pm, which Delhi Metro calls "off-peak" hours. "Whenever I travel by the Metro in the afternoon, I have to wait at least 7-10 minutes for a train. Sometimes I have to wait longer than 10 minutes," said Rakesh Sinha, who also travels by the Blue line daily. "On Friday, the display board at the Dwarka Sector-14 station said the train would come after eight minutes. This happens regularly," he added.

The Dwarka Sector 21-Noida/Vaishali corridor is one of the most crowded lines on the network. The line carries over nine lakh passengers daily, and crossed the figure on August 8, when Delhi Metro recorded a ridership of 9.8 lakh.

Delhi Metro has been trying to manage the increasing ridership for some time now. On August 19, it introduced the first eight-coach train on to the corridor. At present, two such eight-coach trains run on the line. It has also been trying to convert the four-coach trains on the line into six-coach ones.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) plans to induct a total of 31 eight-coach trains on the Blue line, which it says it will introduce in a phased manner.

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Woman lured on matrimonial site, duped of 25k

NEW DELHI: A 22-year-old woman instantly fell for the matrimonial profile of a man who claimed to be the managing director of a leading international airline and alumnus of a high-profile central Delhi school and Oxford University. The two came close and their marriage was about to be fixed when he called her about an accident in his family and requested Rs 50,000 urgently.

The woman, a resident of west Delhi, could deposit only half the amount, and after this the man began to distance himself. His suspicious behavior and demands for money led to a scrutiny by her family which revealed that the photo he had posted on the matrimonial website was of a former Grasim Mr India who featured in several TV commercials and music videos in the late 90s.

Scrutiny of his social networking profile revealed that at least a dozen girls have accused him of fraud. The woman has so far managed to get in touch with two other victims who have given their statement to the police. The economic offences wing of the crime branch has registered a case of cheating and forgery against the man and is hunting for him. His call details and the IP addresses he used are being scanned to get his whereabouts. Police have found that he had also faked his degrees.

The story began a few weeks ago when two people claiming to be the man's brother and sister-in-law approached the woman's family for an alliance. They said they were out of the country, and kept in touch via phone and e-mail but sent copies of their passport and voter ID.

The woman's family became serious about the alliance after the man expressed his wish to marry her. A few days ago he phoned her to deposit the money in a bank account for the treatment of his brother and mother who had met with an accident outside Delhi. He said he was unable to deposit money as he was not in the country.

In the subsequent probe, the family learned that he had another profile on the same matrimonial site with a different name. He also had a profile on another website. The model whose photograph this cheat used is now a doctor in Ludhiana. He, too, has lodged a complaint with the police commissioner of Ludhiana.

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Woman lured on matrimonial site, duped of Rs 25k

NEW DELHI: A 22-year-old woman instantly fell for the matrimonial profile of a man who claimed to be the managing director of a leading international airline and alumnus of a high-profile central Delhi school and Oxford University. The two came close and their marriage was about to be fixed when he called her about an accident in his family and requested Rs 50,000 urgently.

The woman, a resident of west Delhi, could deposit only half the amount, and after this the man began to distance himself. His suspicious behavior and demands for money led to a scrutiny by her family which revealed that the photo he had posted on the matrimonial website was of a former Grasim Mr India who featured in several TV commercials and music videos in the late 90s.

Scrutiny of his social networking profile revealed that at least a dozen girls have accused him of fraud. The woman has so far managed to get in touch with two other victims who have given their statement to the police. The economic offences wing of the crime branch has registered a case of cheating and forgery against the man and is hunting for him. His call details and the IP addresses he used are being scanned to get his whereabouts. Police have found that he had also faked his degrees.

The story began a few weeks ago when two people claiming to be the man's brother and sister-in-law approached the woman's family for an alliance. They said they were out of the country, and kept in touch via phone and e-mail but sent copies of their passport and voter ID.

The woman's family became serious about the alliance after the man expressed his wish to marry her. A few days ago he phoned her to deposit the money in a bank account for the treatment of his brother and mother who had met with an accident outside Delhi. He said he was unable to deposit money as he was not in the country.

In the subsequent probe, the family learned that he had another profile on the same matrimonial site with a different name. He also had a profile on another website. The model whose photograph this cheat used is now a doctor in Ludhiana. He, too, has lodged a complaint with the police commissioner of Ludhiana.

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Learning from kids and Sonali

The SC Johnson and VHAI Fight Dengue for Payal campaign was recently launched in the capital with a press conference which was addressed by the brand ambassador for All Out Sonali Bendre, and Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) executive director Bhavna Mukhopadhyay.

Also present at the event was 12-year-old Payal Samariya, the face of the campaign, who impressed everyone with her confidence. She told us, "Bade hoke, I want to be a doctor. Meri friend ko dengue hua tha, aur phir uska school miss hua tha bahut time ke liye. Tab maine dengue ke baare mein pata kiya, aur apne school mein logon ko bataya." Payal also shot a video for the campaign, and when we asked her about how her friends reacted to seeing her on TV, she replied, "Unko abhi pata nahi hai. Surprise hai unke liye."

At the launch, Sonali said, "As a mother, I do not want children like Payal to suffer from diseases like dengue. It can happen to anyone at any age, and we have to take preventive measures to fight this. Let us fight against mosquito-borne diseases and help protect our families."

As part of an attempt to spread awareness about the causes and prevention of the disease, the organizing team of the campaign also launched a special helpline number, 1800180181818, which started functioning from September 20. Consumers can also discuss prevention tips with health experts, and visit www.Fight-DengueForYourFamily.in to get more information about the campaign.

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Fire breaks out in govt official's home in Lutyens' Delhi

NEW DELHI: A fire broke out on Sunday afternoon at the residence of a central government official in Delhi's high-security Lutyens' zone.

The incident occurred at Ravinder Nagar in the well-known Khan Market area here.

According to a fire department official, nobody was at the residence when the incident occurred and no injuries were reported. The extent of damage to the premises is yet to be determined, he said.

"We received a call at around 3.30pm. and dispatched two fire tenders. The fire was quickly controlled," the official said, adding that the blaze may have started in the storeroom at the residence.

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NRI Anmol Sarna death case: Host’s dad booked for hiding facts

NEW DELHI: More arrests are likely are in the Anmol Sarna case. A police source said that the father of Pranil Shah — at whose house the five friends consumed LSD, leading to the death of the 20-year-old NRI — has been booked for concealing facts and trying to destroy evidence.

The source said the father, K D Shah, has been charged under section 202 (intentional omission of information) of IPC. Police have also taken nail samples of the four friends to determine if a scuffle had broken out between them and Anmol inside the flat. The statements of the RWA president, secretary and the resident of the adjacent flat (number 96) have been recorded.

Although senior police officers refused to speak on the matter, sources said that K D Shah had tried to mislead the police initially and concealed facts on the night of the incident. His booking indicates that police had gathered prima facie evidence against Shah as well as the four friends. They could be arrested under culpable homicide charges. Anmol had lost 900ml of blood and police said the PCR van in which he was taken to hospital was splattered with blood.

An officer said police had also informed the court that it was "too early to give the friends a clean chit" and that they were still under the radar. "We are yet to establish what exactly transpired between 11pm and midnight. The first call was made only at 12.08am. There were many who saw what happened that night but it is difficult to get independent witnesses from South Park apartment as the guards were employed by the society and had probably tried to "contain" Anmol by hitting him with batons. This is why the residents are not willing to come forward and reveal what they saw," an officer said.

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Green tribunal ‘ban’ on a number of Hauz Khas restaurants

NEW DELHI: If you were planning a weekend lunch or dinner at your favourite restaurant in Hauz Khas village, you may have to consider other options. National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered all restaurants running without environmental permission to be closed till the next hearing on Tuesday. Most of them don't have clearance from Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and were found to be discharging untreated waste water into the sewers and also drawing groundwater. None of them has a water connection.

The restaurants, more than 40, told a TOI team that they had no idea they needed DPCC's approval, and some of them are getting ready to install effluent treatment plants (ETPs). It was only two-three weeks back that they got a notice from DPCC, obviously after NGT took up the case. Regular visitors at the village say thousands of restaurants around the city don't have ETPs but are functioning without any hindrance. The officials have been lax and now the city stands to lose one of the few places for hanging out.

DPCC had inspected 34 restaurants recently and served them show-cause notices. Nineteen submitted replies while 15 never responded. The NGT bench took a serious note of the environmental impact of the mushrooming eating joints in the village. "These restaurants have not only been operated without proper clearance as per law but are also discharging effluents (and) drawing potable water, apart from causing a nuisance and environmental hazard...," said the bench.

The bench also expressed its displeasure over DPCC failing to take any action against the restaurants. "They demanded an explanation from DPCC for the delay. They have only issued show-cause notices but taken no stern action. The bench has summoned the member-secretary of DPCC at the next hearing and asked for an explanation for the lapses," said Sumedha Dua, the advocate who is arguing the case.

The bench wants the member-secretary to inform them for how long the restaurants have been functioning, whether they have got the necessary approval for discharging effluents and whether these restaurants are drawing potable water from the ground and have secured permission from the competent authority. It wants to know its plans for solid waste management in these restaurants. It has also asked DPCC to state whether there are more such restaurants operating in the area.

"Considering the seriousness of the issue of the health hazard that is being caused, we have no hesitation to hold that the balance of convenience in granting certain interim orders is in the interest of the public. Accordingly, we hereby direct the closure of all the restaurants situated in Hauz Khas area which are running without obtaining proper permission from the appropriate authorities till the next date of hearing," said the bench. It also added that there shall also be an order of injunction against anyone from starting any new restaurant in the area.

DPCC member-secretary Sandeep Mishra told TOI it is mandatory for eateries to take DPCC's consent as the parameters defined by the ministry of environment and forests for the waste water discharged by eateries are monitored by them. "We welcome the court's order. It will act as a deterrent for other restaurants and eateries that are functioning without ETPs. It's very important for all restaurants to comply and we on our part will implement the court's order in letter and spirit," he said.

Petitioner Pankaj Sharma, who is an environmental activist, welcomed the order. "Hauz Khas Village lies in the ecosensitive zone of Southern Ridge which provides a much-needed ecological support not just to the area but to the entire city. The area is also under ASI protection. However, the illegal restaurants which came up due to connivance of local authorities has posed a serious challenge to it and I am sure that today's decision will set a precedence for the future. We welcome today's landmark decision of National Green Tribunal on Hauz Khas Village which will send a strong message for maintaining environmental sustainability of Delhi," he said.

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Repo rate hike will have cascading effect on economy: BJP

NEW DELHI: BJP on Friday said the RBI decision to increase repo rate will lead to higher housing and car loan rates thus affecting the common man and sought to know from the government what steps it was taking to control inflation.

"Government was today again left to walk alone to face challenges to growth. RBI has taken its own call and increased the repo rate. With this the housing and car loan rates will go up and have a cascading effect on the economy," BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.

She charged that the government has been continuously misreading the economy.

"The government has failed to control inflation. It should clarify what it has done to check inflation," she said.

RBI raised the short-term lending (repo) rate by 0.25 per cent to 7.5 per cent. This will push up inflation further, Sitharaman said.

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Rain brings relief to Delhi

NEW DELHI: The national capital received light to heavy rains on Saturday, after a dry spell and a period of sultry weather.

The rain brought a relief to the people in Delhi, the breeze making the day pleasant.

West, central and south Delhi experienced heavy rain, east Delhi saw light rain, while north Delhi just had overcast skies.

The traffic remained normal and there were no reports of waterlogging.

"The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 33 degrees celsius," an India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said.

Friday's maximum temperature was 34.1 degrees celsius, average for this time of the season, while the minimum temperature was a notch above average at 25.2 degrees.

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NRI Anmol Sarna's murder case: Court grants bail to two accused

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Saturday granted bail to two persons arrested in NRI youth Anmol Sarna's murder case for allegedly helping his friends in procuring drugs consumed during a party on the night of September 17.

Metropolitan Magistrate Deepak Wason granted bail to Bhuwan Sharma and Nehul on furnishing of a personal bond of Rs 25,000 with one surety of the like amount.

Meanwhile, the court remanded Dushyant Lamba, who was also arrested along with Bhuwan and Nehul in connection with the supply of the drugs, to two days of judicial custody after the police did not seek his custody.

The three were arrested on Friday from Noida in Uttar Pradesh.

The two were freed on bail after the police failed to show recovery of huge quantity of drugs for their personal or commercial use from their possession.

Meanwhile, the judge on Saturday pulled up the Delhi police saying that instead of investigating the murder, they were probing the drug supply in India.

It said it can be done as a parallel case but murder probe is necessary at this stage.

Nine persons have been arrested in connection with the incident of murder and consumption of narcotics.

24-year-old Anmol died on the night of September 17 after he attended a party at one of his friend's house at South Park Apartments in Kalkaji here.

The police had said Anmol and his friends -- Shivank Gambhir, Madhav Bhandari, Pranil Shah and Ritham Girhotra had consumed psychedelic drug LSD in Pranil's bedroom.

Surender Bali (40) and Naresh Mishra (60), guards posted at the South Park Apartments, have been arrested under section 302 (murder) of Indian Penal Code for causing grievous head injuries to Anmol with batons after the NRI allegedly created a ruckus at the duplex house of Pranil.

Shivank, Madhav, Ritham and Pranil, all in their 20s, have already been arrested under section 22/27/29 of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act for consumption of the contraband drug.

Anmol's friends and the security guards are in Tihar jail till September 30. On Friday, the court had also rejected the bail applications for Shivank, Madhav, Pranil and Ritham.

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Aarushi-Hemraj murder case: Expert deposes for Talwars

NEW DELHI: Dr Andre Semikhodski, defence witness in the Aarushi-Hemraj murder trial, was cross-examined by Central Bureau of Investigation in Ghaziabad court on Thursday during which he admitted that LCN DNA tests are subject to adverse observations by courts due to possibility of contamination and that he was not aware of whether low copy number DNA tests are valid in India or not.
Rajesh and Nupur Talwar are facing murder trial of their 14-year-old daughter Aarushi and servant Hemraj. The couple had requested in past that LCN DNA tests should be done on the exhibits, a request which was opposed by CBI and rejected by courts. However, on their request recently, Semikhodski was allowed by trial court to depose as defence witness as Talwars claimed he is a touch DNA expert.
When cross-examined by CBI prosecutor R K Saini on Thursday about whether DNA protocol and its validation in different countries could be different, Semikhodski said, "It is correct to say that the rule of evidence in regard to DNA may be different but the protocois the same because it is supplied by the manufacturer of DNA analysis kits in the world".

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Delhi bungalow is costliest property to be attached

NEW DELHI: A 6,796-sq-feet bungalow at 11-A, Prithviraj Road - one of the most exclusive addresses in Delhi - has been attached by the Enforcement Directorate. The ED claims the bungalow is owned by Arun Kumar Mishra, a former chief engineer of UP State Industrial Development Corporation, with "proceeds of crime".

Mishra, who is being prosecuted by the CBI and ED for conducting illicit transactions through fictitious banks accounts, paid Rs 23.26 crore for the property in 2007. However, real estate consultants say that the market value of the property - the bungalow and the large land around it - would be much higher, possibly 10 times higher than the declared value.

This is the biggest-ever attachment of property in terms of value under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act which allows for confiscation of assets allegedly acquired through proceeds of crime. The property was attached on August 30.

Given his relative humble job profile as the chief engineer of the UPSIDC, Mishra was an unlikely owner of such a large bungalow on Prithviraj Road - a stretch which houses top industrialists and diplomatic missions.

ED sources alleged that Mishra bought the property in the name of a Kolkata-based firm Ajanta Merchants Pvt Ltd in 2007, when he was looking after the development of Tronica City, an industrial and residential township stretching over 1,400 acres in Ghaziabad.

According to ED documents, Ajanta Merchants Pvt Ltd bought the bungalow from Ravinder Taneja and Atma Gyan Trust. The broker in the deal, Anil Vaid of Panchsheel Park, told ED that he had received a commission of Rs 21 lakh plus service tax from Ravinder Taneja for the deal.

The broker said he had been in touch with Mishra's staff since August 2006 when he wanted to buy a property in an exclusive address such as Golf Links, Aurangzeb Road, Prithviraj Road or Anand Niketan. He arranged a meeting of Mishra and Taneja at his office and Mishra had negotiated the deal.

ED sources said that Taneja, a leading Delhi-based builder, from whom the engineer had bought the property, is also under the scanner as the agency suspects that a large portion of the payment was in cash.

Apart from Mishra, those who assisted him in this property deal could attract the punitive provisions of PMLA. Section 3 of the Act says, "Whosoever directly or indirectly attempts to indulge or knowingly assists or knowingly is a party or is actually involved in any process or activity connected with the proceeds of crime and projecting it as untainted property shall be guilty of offence of money laundering."

Mishra was raided by the CBI in early 2011 for illegal banking transactions he had allegedly carried out through fictitious names in Dehradun. The money was deposited in dozens of such banks accounts and later withdrawn and invested in his Kolkata-based companies which he had acquired.

ED believes the "proceeds of crime" was generated in the course of Tronica city land allotment during 2005 and 2007 when Mishra was the chief engineer in the UPSIDC. At that time, the Samajwadi Party was in power in UP.

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NRI student Anmol Sarna's death: Three people who supplied arrested, Delhi Police say

NEW DELHI: Three people, who provided drugs to NRI student Anmol Sarna, now dead, and his four friends for their party, have been arrested, police said on Friday.

A police officer confirmed the arrests but declined to give further details.

Police sources, however, said that the arrested include two students of a prominent college of Noida.

Sarna, 21, died in a hospital where he was taken after being found unconscious in a pool of blood outside a residential complex in south Delhi where he was partying at his friend's flat on September 13.

He was allegedly beaten up by two security guards when he created ruckus after taking a drug overdose at the party. His autopsy said he died due to shock and haemorrhage caused by head injuries. There were major injuries on his private parts also.

The two guards are now in custody, along with the four friends, who were arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.

Sarna's family, who have reached Delhi from their home in the US, have demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into his alleged murder.

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NRI student Anmol Sarna's death: Three people who supplied drugs arrested, Delhi Police say

NEW DELHI: Three people, who provided drugs to NRI student Anmol Sarna, now dead, and his four friends for their party, have been arrested, police said on Friday.

A police officer confirmed the arrests but declined to give further details.

Police sources, however, said that the arrested include two students of a prominent college of Noida.

Sarna, 21, died in a hospital where he was taken after being found unconscious in a pool of blood outside a residential complex in south Delhi where he was partying at his friend's flat on September 13.

He was allegedly beaten up by two security guards when he created ruckus after taking a drug overdose at the party. His autopsy said he died due to shock and haemorrhage caused by head injuries. There were major injuries on his private parts also.

The two guards are now in custody, along with the four friends, who were arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.

Sarna's family, who have reached Delhi from their home in the US, have demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into his alleged murder.

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Over 900 dengue cases, two deaths in Delhi

NEW DELHI: Over 900 cases of dengue have been reported from across the capital so far, officials said Friday.

"There are 912 confirmed dengue patients undergoing treatment in city hospitals," said Municipal Corporation of Delhi ( MCD) medical health officer N.K. Yadav.

According to him, two people have succumbed to the vector-borne virus while three deaths due to the disease are suspected.

There has been continuous rise in dengue cases in Delhi. In the corresponding period of 2012, 55 patients were diagnosed with the disease.

Meanwhile, papaya leaves, said to increase dipping platelet counts, are much sought after and fast disappearing from the capital's localities.

Dengue symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pain besides a skin rash similar to measles.

The disease develops into life-threatening dengue hemorrhagic fever, resulting in bleeding, low levels of blood platelets and blood plasma leakage, or dengue shock syndrome, characterised by dangerously low blood pressure.

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Onion prices Delhi continue to remain high at Rs 70-80 per kg

NEW DELHI: Onion prices in the national capital continue to remain high at Rs 70-80 per kg as supplies are still under pressure.

Prices of the kitchen staple in Azadpur Mandi, Asia's largest wholesale market, were ruling at Rs 60 per kg today as supplies were below normal.

"Today, there was a marginal increase in the supplies of onion at 9,500 quintals, but that was insufficient to bring down the prices," Onion Merchant Traders Association president Surendra Budhiraj said.

He said the prices are likely to remain at this level for the next 10-15 days as most of the stored quantities from last year's crop have been exhausted and fresh supplies from South India are yet to reach the consuming states.

Traders also attributed the rise in wholesale onion prices to increase in prices of the bulb in Lasalgaon Mandi in Nashik, which sets the price trend across the country.

At Mother Dairy outlets in the city, onions are being sold at Rs 65-67 per kg, while local vendors are selling it at 70-80 per kg, depending upon the quality and location.

According to National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation data, prices of the politically sensitive commodity at Lasalgaon in Nashik, slightly declined from Rs 58 per kg to Rs 56 per kg on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the consumer affairs ministry had said in the status report on onions that prices are under pressure as 90 per cent of stored onions from last year's crop are exhausted and only 3-4 lakh tonnes are available for consumption.

Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation had risen for the third straight month to 6.1 per cent in August, driven by a whopping 244.62 per cent jump in onion prices on an annual basis.

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Delhi on high alert as Batla anniversary today

NEW DELHI: On the eve of the Batla House encounter anniversary, Delhi Police told all police stations to step up security in the wake of terror threats. Intelligence agencies have warned of possible bomb blasts by Indian Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Toiba to avenge the arrest of Yasin Bhatkal and Asadullah Akhtar.

Delhi Police and the Intelligence Bureau have been asked to keep a close watch on movements of Rohingya and Lashkar operatives as they might strike at Buddhist structures in the capital. A meeting between senior Delhi Police officers and the ministry of home affairs was also held in this connection.

Indian Mujahideen, in 2010, carried out an attack near Jama Masjid on the anniversary of the encounter.

Sources say that Tehsin alias Monu, Bhatkal's deputy is still at large and capable of making bombs. "It is possible that IM and Lashkar operatives may plan an attack on Thursday to show that the organization is still strong," said an officer.

Intelligence agencies have informed the government that Lashkar-e-Toiba is using Rohingya Muslims to carry out activities in India. This claim was supported by LeT operative Abdul Karim Tunda who, during interrogation, said Rohingyas were being trained in Pakistan. He also named leaders of the Rohingya Solidarity Organization working in association with Lashkar bosses Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-Ur-Rehman-Lakhvi and Muzammil.

In his interrogation report, accessed by TOI, Tunda said, "Rohingya Solidarity Organization or the Arakan Rohingya Islamic Front (ARIF) was constituted in Burma. Dr Yunus, the President (Amir) of this Tanzeem, came to Pakistan in 1994 and joined a conference organized by LeT".

Delhi Police has been asked to keep a watch on the 200-300 Rohingya families living in and around Delhi.

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'Bheem' is Aam Aadmi Party candidate for Wazirpur seat in Delhi polls

NEW DELHI: Actor Praveen Kumar who played the role of Bheem in B R Chopra's legendary television series 'Mahabharat' will contest the Delhi assembly elections from Wazirpur on Aam Aadmi Party ticket.

Kumar, an Arjuna awardee and a star of Indian athletics in the 1960s and the 1970s, had joined the party recently.

Kumar had participated in hammer and discus throws events and, won gold in discus throwing in the 1966 and 1970 Asian Games.

The Arvind-Kejriwal-led AAP on Thursday announced the names of six candidates, including Kumar for the upcoming Delhi assembly elections.

Apart from 'Bheem', the party has also fielded Rakhi Birla, a journalist with a television news channel, to contest the elections from Mangolpuri assembly constituency.

Sunil Pokhariyal, a social activist, is AAP candidate from Palam, while Vikram Badhwar, who is leading a number of traders' associations like New Delhi Trader's Association and others, will contest from Chandni Chowk assembly constituency, the party said.

The party has announced Lakshmi Narayan Sharma, earlier associated as the secretary of Labour Party of India, as its candidate from Gonda and Mohan Krishna Sharma from Badli.

AAP has announced a total of 53 candidates for 70 Delhi assembly seats.

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Woman student commits suicide at AIIMS

NEW DELHI, A 25-year-old MBBS student of the AIIMS, reportedly upset over prolonged illness, committed suicide by hanging herself from a fan in her hostel room, police said on Thursday.

Supriya Meena, a final year student, was living in the girls hostel inside the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) campus.

Hostel authorities found her body around 11 am. when they broke down the room's door, said police. They took the action after her mother informed the hostel attendant that there was no response from her daughter despite repeated calls.

According to an AIIMS official, a woman security staff along with the deputy security officer went to her room and found the door locked from inside. After there was no response to repeated knocking, the door was forced open and Meena was found hanging.

Meena was taken to casualty ward where doctors declared her dead. A suicide note was recovered from her possession, said a police officer.

Police was carrying out investigation to ascertain the exact reason behind the suicide, but the suicide note said that she was upset over her prolonged illness, added the officer.

AIIMS spokesperson, Y.K. Gupta said Meena, who hailed from Surat in Gujarat was a good student and had passed her first and second professional examinations in first attempt, but had been ill for quite some time.

"Meena was unwell since 2010 and was under treatment in AIIMS," he said, adding the entire AIIMS family mourns and condoles the "unfortunate and sudden demise of a young and promising medical student".

This was the second suicide in AIIMS in two months and the third this year. All the victims were women students.

Varnika Pandey, 29, a senior resident doctor in the dental surgery department, had also hanged herself in her hostel room Aug 13.

Kirti Gakhar, a 25-year-old first year student of MD Pharmacology, ended her life by consuming poison in her hostel room on March 5.

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Onion prices in Delhi continue to remain high at Rs 70-80 per kg

NEW DELHI: Onion prices in the national capital continue to remain high at Rs 70-80 per kg as supplies are still under pressure.

Prices of the kitchen staple in Azadpur Mandi, Asia's largest wholesale market, were ruling at Rs 60 per kg today as supplies were below normal.

"Today, there was a marginal increase in the supplies of onion at 9,500 quintals, but that was insufficient to bring down the prices," Onion Merchant Traders Association president Surendra Budhiraj said.

He said the prices are likely to remain at this level for the next 10-15 days as most of the stored quantities from last year's crop have been exhausted and fresh supplies from South India are yet to reach the consuming states.

Traders also attributed the rise in wholesale onion prices to increase in prices of the bulb in Lasalgaon Mandi in Nashik, which sets the price trend across the country.

At Mother Dairy outlets in the city, onions are being sold at Rs 65-67 per kg, while local vendors are selling it at 70-80 per kg, depending upon the quality and location.

According to National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation data, prices of the politically sensitive commodity at Lasalgaon in Nashik, slightly declined from Rs 58 per kg to Rs 56 per kg on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the consumer affairs ministry had said in the status report on onions that prices are under pressure as 90 per cent of stored onions from last year's crop are exhausted and only 3-4 lakh tonnes are available for consumption.

Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation had risen for the third straight month to 6.1 per cent in August, driven by a whopping 244.62 per cent jump in onion prices on an annual basis.

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Government may approve 10 pc DA hike on Friday, to benefit 80 lakh

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet could approve a proposal to hike dearness allowance to 90 per cent from existing 80 per cent, a move that would benefit about 50 lakh central employees and 30 lakh pensioners.

"The Union Cabinet will take up for discussion and approval a proposal to increase dearness allowance to 90 per cent at its meeting scheduled on September 20. The hike would be effective from July 1, this year," a source said.

According to the source, the increase in DA to 90 per cent would result in additional annual expenditure of Rs 10,879 crore. There would be additional burden of Rs 6,297 crore on exchequer during 2013-14 on account of this hike in DA.

There would be a double digit hike in DA after about three years. It was last in September, 2010, that the government had announced a hike of 10 per cent to be given with effect from July 1, 2010.

DA was hiked to 80 per cent from 72 per cent in April, 2013, effective from January 1, this year.

As per the practice, the government uses CPI-IW data for past 12 months to arrive at a number for the purpose of any DA hike.

The retail inflation for industrial workers between July, 2012 to June 2013 was used to compute the increase in DA.

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Government may approve 10% DA hike on Friday, to benefit 80 lakh people

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet could approve a proposal to hike dearness allowance to 90 per cent from existing 80 per cent, a move that would benefit about 50 lakh central employees and 30 lakh pensioners.

"The Union Cabinet will take up for discussion and approval a proposal to increase dearness allowance to 90 per cent at its meeting scheduled on September 20. The hike would be effective from July 1, this year," a source said.

According to the source, the increase in DA to 90 per cent would result in additional annual expenditure of Rs 10,879 crore. There would be additional burden of Rs 6,297 crore on exchequer during 2013-14 on account of this hike in DA.

There would be a double digit hike in DA after about three years. It was last in September, 2010, that the government had announced a hike of 10 per cent to be given with effect from July 1, 2010.

DA was hiked to 80 per cent from 72 per cent in April, 2013, effective from January 1, this year.

As per the practice, the government uses CPI-IW data for past 12 months to arrive at a number for the purpose of any DA hike.

The retail inflation for industrial workers between July, 2012 to June 2013 was used to compute the increase in DA.

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December 16 Delhi-rape convicts allowed to pursue studies in Tihar

NEW DELHI: Two of the four death row convicts in the December 16 gang-rape case were allowed to pursue their studies on Wednesday in Tihar Jail by a Delhi court after they contended that the right to education is a fundamental right.

Vinay Sharma and Akshay Singh Thakur, who along with Mukesh and Pawan Gupta are also facing trial in a separate robbery case, had moved an application before additional sessions judge Daya Prakash, saying they want to study in jail as per the facility provided there by Delhi University (DU).

Advocate AP Singh, appearing for Vinay and Akshay, told the court that Vinay was studying in BA first year from DU at the time of his arrest in the December 16 gang-rape case and he could not appear for examination in one of his papers.

Regarding Akshay, he said that his client also wants to study in jail as per the laid down schedule.

"The right to education is a fundamental right of any accused or convict as provided by the Constitution of India and process, system and guidelines of the Supreme Court," Singh said in his application which was allowed by the court.

During the proceedings, Vinay also claimed in the court that they were receiving threats from the inmates in the jail that they would be subjected to razor attacks.

His lawyer said that his clients were facing threats from the inmates and the court should direct the authorities to ensure proper safety.

The court asked the jail authorities to keep them in separate cells and also to ensure their safety.

During the trial proceedings today, the court also recorded the statements of some of the prosecution witnesses in the robbery case.

The four, who were awarded death penalty on September 13 by a fast track court here in the gang rape and murder case, are facing trial for allegedly luring a carpenter into the bus and robbing him before raping and assaulting the girl in a moving bus in south Delhi on December 16 last year. The girl died in a Singapore hospital on December 2.

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