Friday, 22 July 2011

Bihar News, Latest News from Bihar, News of Bihar, Biharprabha News

Bihar News, Latest News from Bihar, News of Bihar, Biharprabha News

Bihar to revive its prominent educational institutes

Posted: 22 Jul 2011 08:21 AM PDT

Bihar Human Resource Development department has planned to face-lift some of the nationally acclaimed educational institutes of the state which have lost glory with time. Jagjivan Ram Institute of Parliamentary Studies and Political Research, AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies and some language academies are few of the institutions on the government's radar.

The Jagjivan Ram Institute of Parliamentary Studies and Political Research was founded by former chief minister Karpoori Thakur after Babu Jagjivan Ram became the deputy Prime Minister during Morarji Desai's tenure as Prime Minister. The institute promotes parliamentary studies and political research.

Sitaram Singh, the HRD higher education director, told : "The state government would give a facelift to the institute. The department has planned to renovate, computerise and upgrade its library."

According to plans, the existing library will be upgraded. Books on parliamentary democracy from national and international-level would be provided for research work.

Singh said: "The library would be computerised with electronic reference of all the books. The institute would have its own website. It would conduct national and international seminars, conferences and workshops."

According to HRD plans, two seminar halls would be constructed for conducting workshops and symposiums.

The park at the institute would be beautified and a life-size statute of Babu Jagjivan Ram would be installed.

The higher education directorate has also planned to upgrade AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies. HRD minister P.K. Shahi, who was appointed as the chairman of AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies recently, said the government would initiate steps to produce quality faculty.

The institute was established in 1958.

D.M. Diwakar, the director of the institute, said "The state government has planned a series of steps for upgradation of the institute, including starting of MPhil course, PhD and MA in social science and others. The state government would develop it as a centre of excellence. The research scholars from the institute would provide training to officials of urban local bodies such as Patna Municipal Corporation and others."

The HRD also plans to upgrade the language academies such as Bhojpuri Academy, Maithili Academy and others.

IPCL and DPSC to invest by the tune of 26k crores in Bihar

Posted: 22 Jul 2011 04:01 AM PDT

India Power Corporation Limited (IPCL) and DPSC Limited , a power generation and distribution group, declared their plan to make investment of Rs 26,450 crore by the next four years in the power segment crosswise India.

IPCL is the holding company of DPSC, which is a power generation and distribution company under Andrew Yule Group, which was taken over by IPCL last year.

DPSC Ltd chairman Mr. Hemant Kanoria stated, “IPCL and DPSC, having an installed capacity of power generation of about 77.4 MW, will be adding another 4,362 MW with an investment of about Rs. 25,000 crore by March, 2015.”

“The locations are Rajasthan, West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh,” Kanoria said.

“In power transmission and distribution segment, DPSC will invest around Rs. 1,450 crore,” he added.

Mr. Kanoria also said that a 60 mega watt wind power facility was under construction and likely to be accredited by March next year in the state of Rajasthan.

In the state of West Bengal, a 450 mega watt thermal coal facility in Haldia and a 540 mega watt facility in Raghunathpur will be accredited in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

“At Haldia, we have more than 200 acres of land. Construction works are going on there. At Raghunathpur, we already have 155 acres of land and we are open to private purchase of more land,” Mr. Kanoria added.

Mr. Kanoria also said that 1,320 mega watt facility in the state of Bihar, 1,320 mega watt facility in Gujarat and 660 mega watt facility in Madhya Pradesh were at different points.

On distribution system of DPSC, the chairman added that it has decided to establish 220 KV and 400 KV stations in the certified region to offer up necessary connectivity with the national and state grid.

Bihar schools being monitored using GPS

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 11:59 PM PDT

PATNA: Minister for human resources development PK Shahi said that schools in the state would be upgraded from secondary to high school level once the department is in possession of actual location of schools which is being done through the Global Positioning System (GPS).

Replying to a starred question of Manorama Prasad in the legislative assembly, the minister said that a survey was manually conducted and a list of over 700 schools was sent to the Central government for upgrading secondary schools to high schools. But the delay has generated a lot of resentment. “Now we know the actual location of schools through Global Positioning System. This exercise is likely to be completed by August 10, 2011,” Shahi said and added once the list is available, the department would carry out the upgrading exercise.

Prasad had earlier mentioned that schools have been upgraded in far-flung areas in West Champaran district which is creating a lot of difficulty for school going children.

In reply to a question of Pradip Kumar, the HRD minister said that according to record, more seats are available in inter classes in government schools than the number of students passed. When he pointed out that students are facing problem in getting admission, the minister said that he would look into the matter. He also said that one Urdu teacher would be appointed in each school in Bihar irrespective of number of Muslim students.

The House also passed several amendment Bills including the Bihar Staff Selection Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2011, Bihar Contingency Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2011, Bihar Clinical Establishment (Control and Regulation) (Repeal) Bill, 2011, and the Bihar Health Services Institution and Medical Persons Protection Bill, 2011.

Review of Singham

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 09:18 PM PDT

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Kajal Agarwal, Prakash Raj, Ashok Saraf, Sachin Khedekar, Sonali Kulkarni

Directed by Rohit Shetty

Rating: **

Many will be quick to point out the similarities between ‘Singham’ and the numerous air-headed Salman Khan blockbusters. But low-gravity action, punches that propel bodies into mid-air ballets and cars walking on two feet, make it obvious: ‘Singham’ is a remake of a Tamil film (Singam) and is directed by Rohit Shetty (who is obsessed with blowing up cars in his films). And one has to be a bit lenient with remakes as they are like miniature models of famous monuments. If your little ‘Leaning Tower of Pisa’ is chiseled too acute, live with it, it’s just a souvenir, right?Ajay Devgn's Singham Banned!

The film is about a humble village cop, Bajirao Singham (Ajay Devgn) who enforces law like a preschool moral science teacher. All accused and convicts are let off with a warning, as they’re usually his friends and/or belong to the good ol’ gaaon ki mitti, which is later distinguished fromshehar ki dhul through a clichéd reference.

Our docile Singham also has a sanki (Marathi for ‘retarded’) side that surfaces on encountering ‘out-of-gaaon‘ outlaws. This is an elaborate affair involving gnashing of teeth, clenching of fists and is welcomed with double bass dhols beating to the title anthem, ‘Singham, Singham’ (can be comfortably replaced with ‘chewing gum..’).

Singham also flexes his perfectly sculpted body to slap-whack-smash goons who try to get fresh with Kavya (Kajal Agarwal), a family friend, who plays quite ‘easy to get’ and swiftly falls in love and establishes herself as the female lead.

But Singham’s turning point is when he meddles with certified politician cum criminal, Jaykant Shikre (Prakash Raj), who terrifies very little, amuses a lot and loves to do the Cha-cha-cha with just his thumb. The action moves to Goa as Jaykant gets Singham transferred and conveniently enough, his lady-love, Kavya, happens to be based out of the beach state as well. Jaykant’s one-liners and silly pranks have Singham flustered enough to almost break down. Naturally, like every self-respecting action hero, Singham gets into his ‘crouching bandar‘ mode and lets his fists deliver his remaining dialogues.

The film’s assumption that mispronunciation is funny makes us endure words like honest (with a loud ‘h’), clean cheet (clean chit), noun-saans (nonsense) and sooocide (suicide). The dialogues are spouted with immense enthusiasm but the words defuse the intensity and make them seem trivial.

Devgn does a fair job and conveys sufficient conviction and humility through his character. Kajal Agarwal makes an unobjectionable debut and her eyes would surely inspire a few compliments. Being pitched as a clean cut action film, the fights sequences could be credited as Rajinikanth-meets-Salman-Khan-meets-Red-Bull-man.

The film’s music won’t be listed for the Grammys but the choreographers have surely harboured a terrible case of itching to come up with the dual-handed-scratching dance move for Devgn. With little practical utility, mastering this dance move could help chefs shape two Dim sums at the same time.

Bihar lost over 2000 crore as revenue in 2009-10

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 08:53 PM PDT

Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has revealed under-assessment or loss of revenue of Rs 2,399.68 crore in various commercial departments in Bihar during 2009-10.
The CAG report for the period ended on March 31, 2011, presented by Deputy Chief Minister S K Modi in the state assembly said records of commercial taxes, state excise, tax on vehicles, land revenue, non-ferrus mining and metallurgical industries and other departmental offices of 2009-10 were test checked and the under-assessment/short levy/loss of revenue was noticed in 2,092 cases.
During 2009-10, the concerned departments accepted under-assessments and other deficiencies of Rs.1,784.41 crore in 1,892 cases, the CAG report said.
In 10 commercial taxes circles, suppression of sales/purchase turnover of Rs 766.96 crore by 17 dealers resulted in under-assessment of tax of Rs 610.40 crore, including leviable penalty, it said.
Irregular claim of Input Tax Credit (ITC) by the dealers in two commercial taxes circles resulted in excess allowance of ITC of Rs 137.17 crore including leviable penalty.
Non-detection of application of incorrect rates of tax in seven commercial taxes circles resulted in short levy of tax of Rs.28.51 crore, including interest and leviable penalty.
In Patna West commercial taxes circle, though the inter-state stock transfer of goods valued at Rs 19.09 crore was not supported by prescribed declaration forms, the tax was levied at lower rate.
This resulted in short levy of tax of Rs 84.62 lakh, the CAG report said.
The CAG report said suppression of import/purchase of scheduled goods of Rs 238.39 crore by five dealers registered in five commercial taxes circles resulted in short levy of entry tax to Rs 56.58 crore including leviable penalty and interest.
A review of levy and collection of state excise revenue indicated that due to non-delayed settlement of excise shops coupled with non-operation of shops by the department or through BSBCL, the government sustained a loss of Rs 134.29 crore in the form of licence fee.
Due to the absence of periodic review of shop-wise lifting of liquor against allotted minimum guarantee quantity, short lifting of liquor by the licensees remained unnoticed leading to a loss of government revenue of Rs 94.61 crore, it said.
Bihar government’s own contribution to the tax revenue was only 27% of the total revenue during the period 2009-10, CAG report said.
It said total receipts of the state government for 2009-10 were Rs.35,526.83 crore, while the revenue raised by it was Rs 9,760.09 crore comprising tax revenue of Rs 8,089.67 crore and non tax revenue of Rs 1,670.42 crore.
Receipts from the government of India were Rs 25,766.74 crore. The state’s share of divisible union taxes was Rs 18,202.58 crore and grants-in-aid Rs 7,564.16 crore.
Thus, the state government’s own contribution to tax revenue was only 27% of the total revenue, it noted.
Due to delayed institution of certificate proceedings for recovery of arrears, there was loss of revenue of Rs 3.14 crore in the shape of interest, the CAG said.
The internal audit was weak as evidenced by low quantum of departmental inspection, non-maintenance of registers and lack of internal audit, the CAG said.
In 26 district transport offices there was tax dues of Rs 19.52 crore (including penalty) pertaining to 751 transport vehicles owners nor action was taken towards realisation of dues by the concerned DTOs.
In three district trasport offices, certifcates of fitness issued to 14 transport vehicles without ensuring up-to-date payment of tax resulted in non-realisation of Rs 54.76 lakh including penalty.
Besides, plying of these vehicles without proper inspection was fraught with risk of causing damage to public life and property, it said.
In four district transport offices, 7,498 professional driving licences were granted to ineligible persons which resulted in loss of Rs 15.75 lakh revenue and also involved road safety concerns.
A review on levy and collection of stamp duty and registeration fee, the lack of cordination between the registeration department and other public offices resulted in non-levy of stamp duty and registeration fee of Rs 1.42 crore in test checked districts during 2004-05 to 2008-09, the report said.

Amitabh Bachhan to watch Aarakshan with Nitish Kumar

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 08:51 PM PDT

Mumbai- Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan will soon visit Patna to watch Aarakshan with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who has expressed his desire to watch the film to the director of the film Prakash Jha.

Jha stated that Nitishji is a dear friend, who visited a new restaurant at his shopping mall in Patna.

His representatives invited him on his behalf to watch a special screening of the film but Nitishji immediately stated that he will watch the film only in the presence of Mr Bachchan and the director of the film.

Bihar CM is a movie freak, but as he is a busy man he does not get much time to watch films. Rajneeti is the last film that he watched.

Bihar Govt employees to get home loan at 8 percent

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 08:47 PM PDT

Bihar government has decided to give its employees home loan advance amounting to Rs 30 lakh each at an interest rate of 8%.

Making this announcement in the state legislative assembly on Wednesday, deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi said the government has already signed MoUs with banks for this purpose. He said that the government would become guarantor for the loanees. In case any employee defaults in paying EMI, the government would deduct the amount from his salary.

Modi further said that all government employees would now have to be computer-savvy, for which departmental exams in computer operation would be conducted on a routine basis. If any employees failed to fetch the desired marks, his promotion would be withheld. He said that the government was preparing a data base of its four lakh employees and a good number of pension holders.

He further announced that now each MLA would get Rs 1 lakh for purchase of laptop, desktop, I-pod, palmtop etc. Those MLAs who have received laptop earlier, would have to pay the depreciated cost to be able to get fresh Rs 1 lakh. However, a newcomer would get the amount without any hassle, he added.

NABARD gives 50 crore for bridges in Bihar

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 08:43 PM PDT

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has allocated Rs 50.56 crore for completion of as many as nine high-level rural bridge projects in flood –prone districts of Bihar during current and next financial years.
Five of the nine bridges are in Purnea district — three across Libri rivers at Chikani Sharnathi Tola, Kajara ghat and Rangpura ghat, and two others are at Liladhar and Sanjha ghat.
The four other bridges are one each in Jale block in Darbhanga district, at Sadapur in Nalanda district, across Barnar river in Jamui district, and in Piprahi block of Sheohar district.
The loan to the state government has been given from its Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF). The projects are expected to benefit 110 villages of the twin districts and will also generate non-recurring employment of 22.61 lakh mandays, a NABARD official said.
Nabard has sanctioned a loan of Rs 4,956 crore under RIDF to the state government against 12, 228 projects in various sectors for the erection of Infrastructure.
The bank also said of the 12,228 projects taken up for implementation by the government’s agencies concerned, 9,061 projects have been completed, while the remaining 3,167 projects are at various stages of implementation
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