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

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• Did Albert Einstein starve his Wife for Sex ?
• 5 year Old returns back after spending Jail Term in Bangladesh
• India launches website to track Mobile Consumer Complaints
• Indian Shooting Team denied entry in London Hotel
• Sale of Gandhi’s Charkha grows by 300 percent
• Bihar Lawyers to go on Strike on May 2
• Now a Mango named after UP CM Akhilesh
• Kerala Tourism wins best advertisement award in Prague
• Prince Andrew to arrive India today for Diamond Jubilee Celebrations
• US Sikhs launch a mobile app to report Racial Profiling

Did Albert Einstein starve his Wife for Sex ? Posted: 30 Apr 2012 09:01 AM PDT Albert Einstein While the world knows Albert Einstein for his theory of general relativity which effected a revolution in physics, a book has revealed the genius expected his wife to abide by a cruel list of rules which included sex ban. Einstein barred Mileva Maric from sitting with him or going out together – and even ordered to “stop talking to me if I request it”, The Sun reported. He made clear that sex was a no-no saying: “You will not expect intimacy from me.” The list revealed in Einstein: His Life and Universe states that he insisted she tidied his study, did his laundry and gave him “three meals regularly”. These were his conditions for them to stay together for the sake of sons Hans and Eduard as their 11-year marriage foundered in 1914. Within months, his fed-up Serbian missus, 39, fled Berlin with the kids for Zurich and had a breakdown. They divorced in 1919. Einstein, famed for his E=MC2 theory, later wed cousin Elsa and died in 1955, aged 76.

5 year Old returns back after spending Jail Term in Bangladesh Posted: 30 Apr 2012 08:29 AM PDT A 5 year old Indian Kid has returned back after spending jail term in Bangladesh. Ariful Sheikh today returned home in Murshidabad district after spending a year in a Bangladesh jail along with his grandparents after being sentenced to two months in prison for trespassing. Ariful and his grandparent–Hashimuddin Sheikh (48) and Mafroza Khatun (40)–reached Gede border checkpoint in Nadia district by road through western Chuadanga frontier in Bangladesh at 11.30 am, Murshidabad police said. Setting foot on Indian soil, Sheikh, a farmer, said, “it feels good to be returning home after such a long time”. Ariful’s parents said they were happy to be finally reunited with their son. “I am very happy and I thank everyone for their help and support,” his mother said. Asked where was he for the past one year, Ariful promptly said, “jailkhana”(jail), and when further asked in which country he replied, “Bangladesh”. Ariful had accompanied his grandparents to the neighbouring country in April last year to visit an ailing relative there. The three were arrested while returning from Bangladesh on April 15, 2011 after they were found travelling without proper travel documents, police said. The family hails from Gajadhar Para near Baharampur. They were sentenced to a two-month jail term by a judicial magistrate court in Kushthia in Bangladesh and fined Taka 500 (about Rs 300). Although their term ended in June last, they had been languishing in Kushtia jail even after their prison term was over and an order to be repatriated to India. Deputy Commissioner or Administrative Chief of western Kushtia district, Banamali Bhoumik, told in Dhaka on phone that the district administration arranged a special car for the three to be taken to neighbouring Chuadanga, amid an opposition enforced nationwide daylong shutdown. They crossed the Darshana border with the help of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and their Indian counterparts Border Security Force (BSF). Later, the BSF handed them over to Murshidabad police, BSF sources said

India launches website to track Mobile Consumer Complaints Posted: 30 Apr 2012 07:34 AM PDT The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Monday launched a portal to help subscribers lodge service complaints and track their redressal. Called the Telecom Consumers Complaint Monitoring System (TCCMS), the portal tccms.gov.in would help consumers locate various contact details, including consumer care and general information numbers of the complaint centre and appellate authority of their service provider. The portal would also help the consumers access the website of their service provider’s complaint monitoring portal to track the current status of their complaints or appeals lodged with their service provider complaint centre or appellate authority, TRAI said in a statement. And it would help TRAI in monitoring the status of redressal of complaints of consumers with the service providers.

Indian Shooting Team denied entry in London Hotel Posted: 30 Apr 2012 06:52 AM PDT London: In a shocking incident, the Indian shooting contingent, which is currently in London for the ISSF World Cup, was denied entry into a hotel here on Saturday night that left the players without any accommodation, CNN IBN reported The hotel authorities asked the rifle and pistol team, which included India’s Olympic shooters, to leave despite a confirmed room booking. The team members have said that later the money paid for the rooms was refunded. The shooting federation NRAI subsequently got the Indian High Commission here involved, and a new hotel was found late at night. The NRAI is lodging a diplomatic protest along with writing a strong complaint to the Organising Committe, the International Olympic Committee and the Indian Olympic Association. The tournament doubles up as a pre-Olympic test event before the Games begin in July later this year.

Sale of Gandhi’s Charkha grows by 300 percent Posted: 30 Apr 2012 05:43 AM PDT Mahatma Gandhi’s eternal companion Charkha has touched new levels of popularity among his followers as the sale of the hand spinning wheel has tripled in the last year from the Sabarmati Ashram here. The Father of the Nation used charkha as a tool to promote economic self-sufficiency during the British rule and bring awareness about his `swadeshi’ movement. Charkhas are available in three different sizes and priced at Rs 100, Rs 200 and Rs 300 apiece, Secretary of the Sabarmati Ashram Amrut Modi said. “In FY 2010-11, the sale of charkhas was to the tune of Rs 3 lakh, which surged to Rs 9 lakh in 2011-12. I have not seen the sale go up in this manner in my entire life,” he said. “The reason for increase in the sale of charkhas, as I can see, is that Mahatma Gandhi’s following has increased world-wide. His message of non-violence and truth have become more relevant in these disturbing times.” “What we have done over the last few years is that we demonstrate, to the visitors coming to the Ashram, how hand spun thread is formed by spinning the charkha.” Gandhian Kishorebhai Gohil holds charkha sessions at the Hriday Kunj, the place where Gandhiji stayed in the ashram, for visitors, he said. “Gohil explains how thread is spun from cotton. Visitors are allowed to try their hands on charkha and many of them find the whole experience amazing,” Modi added. Gandhi used to daily spin charkha in morning and evening at the ashram, produce khadi from it and wore cloths made from them to promote self-reliance.

Bihar Lawyers to go on Strike on May 2 Posted: 30 Apr 2012 04:39 AM PDT Lawyers in Bihar will abstain from judicial work on May 2 to protest against the arrest of one their colleagues in Samastipur district on April 19. Bihar State Bar Council (BSBC) today said counsels throughout the state will abstain from judicial work on May 2 to protest against the arrest of lawyer Anil Kumar Singh by the authorities in Samastipur district. The lawyers will also press for transfer of the District Magistrate (DM) and the Deputy Development Commissioner (DDC) by holding them responsible for harassment and wrongful arrest of their colleague, BSBC’s Officiating Secretary Ashok Kumar said in a statement. Singh was arrested for receiving a fee of Rs 30 for drafting a petition, which the DDC considered as bribe. It was also decided at the meeting that the lawyers will abstain from judicial work in Samastipur district till the DM and the DDC were transferred out of the district, Kumar said. The lawyers also demanded a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for “victimising” Singh, Kumar said. It was also decided that a 11-member team of the BSBC will soon visit Samastipur to inquire into the matter and will submit a report to the apex body for further action.

Now a Mango named after UP CM Akhilesh Posted: 30 Apr 2012 03:36 AM PDT The famous Dussheri belt of Uttar Pradesh has a new offering this summer Akhilesh Aam, a new variety of mango named after the state’s youngest Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. Grafting expert and Padamshree horticulturist Haji Kaleemullah Khan, who had earlier launched mangoes in the name of cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, Bollywood actress Aishwarya and Congress president Sonia Gandhi has come up with ‘Akhilesh aam’ this season. Khan said he has given this name “as the tree which bears the fruit has just entered its fifth year and no tree bears fruit in such a tender age. “As the young tree has fruit, which is of good quality I decided to name it after our CM Akhilesh”, Khan said. About the mango, Khan said that it is reddish in colour and would be known for its sweetness. It would also have a thin peel and seed. “The mango, which is yet to ripen, will weigh about one kg. I will present it to the CM once it is ready”, Khan said. The horticulturist, who is based in the mango-belt of Malihabad, is known for growing unique variety of fruits especially mangoes. Last year, Khan had grafted new variety of mango and named it as ‘Sonia aam’ and in May 2010, the 70-year-old man came with a ‘Sachin aam’. Kaleemullah won the Padmashree for growing more than 300 varieties of mangoes of different shapes and sizes on a tree. The tree is about 100 years old and he started working on it in 1987 to develop the craft of growing different varieties on one tree.

Kerala Tourism wins best advertisement award in Prague Posted: 30 Apr 2012 02:28 AM PDT The Kerala Tourism advertisement campaign ‘Your Moment is Waiting’ has won the bronze medal at the prestigious Prague International Advertising Festival (PIAF) in the category of ‘state as an advertiser.’ Other winners at the third edition of PIAF, which was held in Prague April 25-26, included German car manufacturer Volkswagen, consumer goods major Uniliver and American confectionary conglomerate Kraft Foods, according to information available here. Kerala Tourism had also won three gold medals at the Pacific Asia Travel Association international awards held recently. “This is an unprecedented honour for us. It is a recognition of the hard work put in by the Kerala Tourism in managing the brand Kerala and devising effective marketing strategies,” said Kerala Tourism Minister A.P. Anil Kumar. PIAF is an exclusive event in the global advertising calendar. the other big names, which shared the podium with Kerala Tourism included, McDonald’s Germany, Sony Pictures, Heineken and Lego.

Prince Andrew to arrive India today for Diamond Jubilee Celebrations Posted: 30 Apr 2012 01:58 AM PDT British Prince Andrew will Visit India this week as part of Queen Elizabeth II‘s diamond jubilee celebrations. Prince Andrew will arrive in New Delhi today as part of a weeklong visit to India. He will travel to Kohima to visit the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, the first-ever by a member of British royalty to the historic site. In Kolkata, he will visit a child-care home and vocational education centre run by the Women’s Interlink Foundation. Moving south to Chennai, he will visit the Officers’ Training Avademy, lay a wreath at the Madras War Grave and join a special Thanksgiving and Commemoration Service at St. Mary’s Church in Fort St. George. He will then go to Bangalore to visit the Infosys and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. Prince Andrew will visit Mumbai on Wednesday and meet corporate head honchos demonstrating the importance of the Britain attaches to its relationship with India. He will visit the Western Naval Command in south Mumbai and the elite Dhirubhai Ambani International School in suburban Bandra-Kurla Complex. “The scope of the visit underlines the depth and breadth of the cooperation between our two countries. It will incorporate a wide range of themes, from inclusive development and defence ties to the growing business relationship,” the official said.

US Sikhs launch a mobile app to report Racial Profiling Posted: 30 Apr 2012 01:31 AM PDT The Sikh Coalition, a US based community group, has launched FlyRights, an innovative mobile application that allows users to report instances of airport profiling in real time. Reports filed through the FlyRights app will be considered official, actionable complaints by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the group said. “FlyRights creates a novel marriage between technology and civil rights activism. It is the first and only mobile application created to combat racial profiling at airports,” the coalition said. The application becomes available for download April 30 in the Apple App Store and the Android market. Asking its supporters to download FlyRights on their phones and start filing reports of unfair treatment at airports, the group said: “Policy will not change unless you make your voice heard.” “This application is easy to use and will ensure that your voice will officially be heard by the TSA and DHS,” it added.

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Alex Paul Menon is safe say Interlocuters / Key decisions in Bengaru Laxman Verdict

Biharprabha News   Monday, April 30, 2012 Kolkata people to root for Dada not Knight Riders on May 5 Eden Gardens may be the official home venue for the Kolkata Knight Riders, but come May 5 a majority of Kolkatans – from celebrities to the man on the street – seem to be gearing up emotionally to back their eternal favourite "Dada" Sourav Ganguly, who will lead the Pune Warriors out on the historic [...] People in Assam plant 40885 saplings within one hour In a bid to enter the Guinness World Records, 100 people Sunday planted 40,885 saplings within an hour near the Chirang Reserve Forest in lower Assam. They wanted to break the record of 26,422 saplings planted in an hour in a Northern Ireland park two years ago. Between 11 am and 12 noon, 100 men [...] Dentist Nupur Talwar Taken into Custody Dentist Nupur Talwar was today taken into custody soon after she surrendered before a Ghaziabad court hearing the 2008 twin murder case of her teenaged daughter Aarushi and their domestic help Hemraj. A few days ago, the CBI raided Nupur's residence in the Hauz Khas area to execute the warrant to ensure her presence in [...] Litchi output expected to decline this Season With the mercury peaking and rains and thundershowers lashing this litchi belt of Bihar sporadically, worried farmers have already started counting their losses this year. Some predict that the litchi production could be down by 30-40 percent due to inclement weather conditions. "Till last week, we were hopeful of bumper production of litchi, but no [...] Alex Paul Menon is safe say Interlocuters Abducted Sukma collector Alex Paul Menon is safe, two interlocutors who met Maoists in their jungle hideout said Sunday, adding the rebels had replied to the Chhattisgarh government's message on their demands for his release. The two interlocutors – Hyderabad-based professor G. Hargopal and former IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer B.D. Sharma – had gone [...] Key decisions in Bengaru Laxman Verdict A Delhi court yesterday awarded four years' rigorous imprisonment to the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) former president Bangaru Laxman for accepting a bribe from a fake arms dealer in 2001. The court also slapped him with a fine of Rs.1 lakh. Following are the key points of the verdict: - Character or class is not [...] 2013-14 crucial year for Indian Security The Taliban threat and instability in the Af-Pak region can have its fallout on India's security in the next two years, Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne warned. "2013 and 2014 are crucial watershed years as far as India's security is concerned in the backdrop of instability writ large in Afghanisthan and Pakistan," he [...] Kalam not excited to President again Former President A P J Abdul Kalam today appeared not averse to be in the race for another term in the Rashtrapati Bhavan. "Let us wait for some time…After some time, you ask me," Kalam told reporters here when asked whether he was ready to be elected to a second term as President. His remarks [...] Major Fire breaks out in a Oil Mill of Varanasi A major fire broke out today in an oil mill in Ashapur area of the district, triggering panic among locals, fire department officials said. "The massive fire broke out at Jhunjhunwala oil mill, setting off blasts in five oil tankers," Fire Officer Subhash Singh said, adding no casualty has been reported so far. Over a [...] Amitabh and Rekha to come together Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha might have parted ways over decades but Big B doesn't rule out the possibility of reuniting with her again on the silver screen. "If there is a good story and like it then I don't mind working with her," the megastar said at a function here Saturday. The two have earlier [...] Have a nice day The Biharprabha News Team

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

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• Alex Paul Menon is safe say Interlocuters
• Key decisions in Bengaru Laxman Verdict
• 2013-14 crucial year for Indian Security
• Kalam not excited to President again
• Major Fire breaks out in a Oil Mill of Varanasi
• Amitabh and Rekha to come together
• Woman pulls out Boyfriend’s all Teeth after getting dumped
• Alex Paul Menon spends Eights day in Maoist Captivity
• India to have 100 more Dialysis Centers in 3 years
• Delhi’s Per Capita income only 30 percent of National Average

Alex Paul Menon is safe say Interlocuters Posted: 29 Apr 2012 11:22 AM PDT Abducted Sukma collector Alex Paul Menon is safe, two interlocutors who met Maoists in their jungle hideout said Sunday, adding the rebels had replied to the Chhattisgarh government’s message on their demands for his release. The two interlocutors – Hyderabad-based professor G. Hargopal and former IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer B.D. Sharma – had gone to meet the rebels Saturday with a message from the Chhattisgarh government and emerged from the rebels-commanded area Sunday morning with a reply from the Maoists. The mediators told a few electronic mediapersons in state’s violence-hit Sukma district, some 500 km south from here, “We had a detailed talk with top Maoists leaders during our overnight stay in the jungle and briefed them about the talk we had with government mediators in Raipur regarding the two demands for Menon’s release.” However, the interlocutors refused to give any details of the Maoists’ reply to the local media in Chintalnar area of Sukma district. They said: “Collector Menon is safe, we will share our discussion with Maoists only with the government-mediators in Raipur.” Hargopal and Sharma visited the Maoist hideout after holding several rounds of closed-door marathon meetings with two government mediators – Nirmala Buch, former Madhya Pradesh chief secretary, and S.K. Mishra, former chief secretary of Chhattisgarh – at Raipur’s state guest house. Official sources said the Chhattisgarh government, which is desperate to ensure the safe release of Menon, has positively responded to the Maoists’ two demands – release of 17 jailed ultras and a halt to the anti-Maoist drive, Operation Green Hunt. “We are highly optimistic about the early and safe release of the young IAS officer,” a senior official at police headquarters here told IANS. Menon, 32, was abducted at gunpoint April 21 by rebels from a forested location in Sukma district, some 500 km south of here. The Maoists shot dead his two guards who resisted his abduction.

Key decisions in Bengaru Laxman Verdict Posted: 29 Apr 2012 07:44 AM PDT A Delhi court yesterday awarded four years’ rigorous imprisonment to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) former president Bangaru Laxman for accepting a bribe from a fake arms dealer in 2001. The court also slapped him with a fine of Rs.1 lakh. Following are the key points of the verdict: - Character or class is not made in crisis, rather it is exhibited. It is the erosion of the moral character of individuals in particular and society in general and lack of national interest, which has led to the large scale of corruption adversely affecting the social, spiritual, political, economical, educational and moral values of or nation. - The wisdom in the saying “Crime never pays” is belied by the factual realities of today. The crime scenario in our country is distressingly disturbing, as it has shattered hopes of both the plebeian and intellectual society about the possible rejuvenation of value based society. - The problem of large-scale rampant corruption, more particularly, the political corruption, is weakening the political body and damaging the supreme importance of law governing the society. - Sentencing is an important part of criminal administration of justice. Judicial discretion plays a pivotal role in sentencing. The object for which “sentence” is imposed is not only to punish the convict for an unlawful act committed by him. But also, it is important to make it clear that the society as such denounces the sort of conduct in which the offender was involved. It is also to deter the other persons from committing the similar offence. - Corruption, to my mind, is worse than prostitution as latter might endanger the morals of individual, wheras, the former invariably endangers the entire society. It is virulent for the nation and makes people full of ire. However, the problem is that, when a society which publicily rues corruption, but privately indulges in it, then we need to ask ourselves, do we really want a corruption-free society. - Here comes the importance and role of the courts. The courts should not be a distant abstraction omnipotent in books only. Courts have to act as an “activist institution” which is cynosure of public hope. The courts will be functional futility, if it does not put its all guns blazing, until the wrong is righted. - No doubt the company ie M/s Westend International and the product ie HHTIs which they were promoting were both fictitious, but this fact was only known to the representatives of the company, who had approached the convict for favour. - Convict Bangaru Laxman had agreed to exert his personal influence in favour of the fictitious company for his personal gains by way of getting “illegal gratification” with the intention and belief that the product for which a supply order is required, is genuine. - The accomplice of crime of corruption is generally our own indifference. “Sab Chalta hai” syndrome has led us to present situation where we are, where nothing moves without an illegal gratification. - Corruption in itself is bad and in the words of Hon’ble Supreme Court is like “cancer” for the society. Its gravity and magnitude assumes dangerous and perilous proportions, if the same is done by someone in position of authority, to compromise with the defence mechanism of our country and lives of its brave soldiers.

2013-14 crucial year for Indian Security Posted: 29 Apr 2012 06:39 AM PDT The Taliban threat and instability in the Af-Pak region can have its fallout on India’s security in the next two years, Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne warned. “2013 and 2014 are crucial watershed years as far as India’s security is concerned in the backdrop of instability writ large in Afghanisthan and Pakistan,” he said delivering the Air Chief Marshal L M Khatre Memorial lecture at Bangalore. Browne said the effects of worsened instability in Afghanisthan, especially after the pull out of US troops from the region, could reach the Wagah border. “And of course you heard what (Lashkar founder) Hafeez Saeed has said in Peshawar recently. He (Saeed) wants to recover Muslim parts of Kashmir for Pakistan,” he said. Browne later told reporters, the world was trying to make sure the armed and police forces in the region were capable of facing the challenge of Taliban attacks. “They have shown some good results during the recent Taliban attacks on Afghanisthan capital Kabul. We hope in the next two years the Afghan police and armed forces take the responsibility of handling these situations,” he said. If Afghanisthan police and armed forces are unable to handle the situation, then security in the neighbouring region would further downslide, Browne said. On India’s border problems with Pakistan and China, he said, “these have remained unresolved …they do not want to resolve it…Even if they want to resolve they want most of the points in their favour.” He said both the countries were colluding in the development of aircraft and weapon. “I can't think of any other model in the world where you are dealing with this kind of situation with two nuclear powered neighbouring countries having border issues with us as a common cause for point of friction

Kalam not excited to President again Posted: 29 Apr 2012 05:38 AM PDT Former President A P J Abdul Kalam today appeared not averse to be in the race for another term in the Rashtrapati Bhavan. “Let us wait for some time…After some time, you ask me,” Kalam told reporters here when asked whether he was ready to be elected to a second term as President. His remarks came at a time when political leaders are holding meetings to reach a consensus on the new President. Kalam had served as the President between 2002 and 2007. In the 2007 Presidential elections, Kalam’s name was proposed by smaller parties to enter the race but he backed out at the last minute in the absence of a consensus

Major Fire breaks out in a Oil Mill of Varanasi Posted: 29 Apr 2012 04:36 AM PDT A major fire broke out today in an oil mill in Ashapur area of the district, triggering panic among locals, fire department officials said. “The massive fire broke out at Jhunjhunwala oil mill, setting off blasts in five oil tankers,” Fire Officer Subhash Singh said, adding no casualty has been reported so far. Over a dozen fire tenders have been pressed into service to douse the raging inferno, which could not be put out till midnight, and more fire brigades have been called from adjoining districts. The fire has caused damages worth crores, Singh said. Though the reason behind the blaze is yet to be ascertained, the fire official said it might have been caused by welding work being carried out on the mill premises. Before fire fighters could reach the spot, the blaze had engulfed the refinery plant, cattle feed plant and godown of the oil mill, he said.

Amitabh and Rekha to come together Posted: 29 Apr 2012 03:34 AM PDT Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha might have parted ways over decades but Big B doesn’t rule out the possibility of reuniting with her again on the silver screen. “If there is a good story and like it then I don’t mind working with her,” the megastar said at a function here Saturday. The two have earlier worked together in films like “Silsila”, “Mr Natrwarlal”, “Muqaddar Ka Sikandar” among others.

Woman pulls out Boyfriend’s all Teeth after getting dumped Posted: 29 Apr 2012 01:31 AM PDT London: A woman dentist in Poland is facing jail after she allegedly pulled out all her former boyfriend’s teeth because he dumped her for another woman. Anna Mackowiak, 34, took revenge on 45-year-old Marek Olszewski when he turned up at her clinic with toothache just days after breaking up with her, the Daily Mail reported. She gave him a heavy dose of anaesthetic and plucked all his teeth out. She then wrapped his head and jaw in a bandage to stop him from opening his mouth. She said there had been complications and he would need to see a specialist. “I tried to be professional and detach myself from my emotions. But when I saw him lying there I just thought, “What a b******’,” said the dentist from Wroclaw. Mr Olszewski, her ex-boyfriend, said, “I knew something was wrong because when I woke up I couldn’t feel any teeth and my jaw was strapped up with bandages.” “I didn’t have any reason to doubt her. I thought she was a professional,” he said. His new girlfriend has now left him, saying she could not be with a man without teeth. The dentist is being probed for medical malpractice and abusing the trust of a patient. She faces three years in jail, the daily said.

Alex Paul Menon spends Eights day in Maoist Captivity Posted: 29 Apr 2012 01:23 AM PDT Abducted Sukma Collector Alex Paul Menon spent the eighth day in the captivity of Maoists’ whose mediators travelled to Tadmetla forests to seek instructions from them after talks with government mediators for the IAS officer’s release failed. Faced with the demands of ultras, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh has convened a meeting of his senior ministers to find a solution. “We want some way out. We are serious about the issue and want the Collector to be released at the earliest. We will do everything permissible within the ambit of law,” he said. Menon, a 2006 batch IAS officer, was abducted by the Maoists on April 21 from Sukma district of Chhattisgarh. Additional Director General of Police Ram Nivas told PTI that B D Sharma and Professor Hargopal, the two interlocutors from Maoist’s side, who are holding talks with the government, flew to Chintalnar by a chopper and proceeded further by a two-wheeler. Ram Nivas said that the forest of Tadmetla, a Naxal stronghold, is so dense that only a two-wheeler can ply there. This is the same area where the Maoists had ambushed and killed 76 CRPF jawans in April 2010. According to police, the local media-persons took Sharma and Hargopal up to Tadmetla, where they were met by around 10 armed Maoists, who took them further into the forest. Nirmala Buch and S K Mishra are the government-side interlocutors and there have been two rounds of talks so far. In exchange for Menon, the Maoists want release of 17 of their jailed leaders, halt to the anti-Maoist offensive ‘Operation Green Hunt’ and return of security forces in Bastar to the barracks.

India to have 100 more Dialysis Centers in 3 years Posted: 29 Apr 2012 12:20 AM PDT NephroPlus, a leading kidney care clinic group, Friday said it plans to set up 100 dialysis centres across India over the next three years. The company also announced eminent nephrologist Brian J.G. Pereira will join its board as a director. “We hope to leverage his expertise as we work to build the NephroPlus brand and provide the best kidney care and dialysis treatment to patients in India,” said NephroPlus CEO Vikram Vuppala. “I look forward to working with the enterprising team of NephroPlus as we actively strive to raise the level of kidney care and dialysis treatment in the country,” said Pereira, an adjunct professor of medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, and the Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI). He also served as president of the National Kidney Foundation in the US.

Delhi’s Per Capita income only 30 percent of National Average Posted: 28 Apr 2012 11:18 PM PDT The average income of Delhiites is expected to be Rs.1.75 lakh for the year 2011-12, almost 3 times the national average of around Rs.60,000, according a report by the state government’s Directorate of Economics and Statistics. The figures came to light in the report titled “Estimates of State Domestic Product 2011-12″, which was released Friday by Delhi Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit. Noting the key finds of the report, Dikshit said that it puts the capital, with a per capita income of Rs.1,75,812, in the second spot after Goa, which has the highest annual per capita income at Rs.1.92 lakh, amongst all states and Union Territories. The report puts Delhi’s gross state domestic product (GSDP) for the year 2011-12 at Rs.3,13,934 crore as compared to Rs.2,64,496 crore for the year 2010-11. “According to the report, the GSDP also showed a growth rate of 18.7 percent,” Dikshit said. “The report shows that the share of the service sector in GSDP in Delhi is about 82 percent, which is an effect of our industrial policy which promotes non-polluting industries,” she added. “Further, the city is developing as a major centre of service sector including information technology and leaving behind neighbouring cities like NOIDA and Gurgaon. This has resulted in large number of employment opportunities in Delhi,” Dikshit claimed. Dikshit said that the report gave a rise of 339 percent in per capita income while the GSDP showed a 490 percent increase from year 1998-99, when she first came to power.

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

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• Baba Ramdev takes on UPA for politicizing nomination of Sachin
• Kedarnath shrine reopened after Six Months
• Delhi Lokayukta calls for Social boycott of the Corrupts
• Amitabh expresses happiness over Sachin’s nomination to RS
• ISRO places RISAT I in its final orbit
• Amnesty International requests PM to release protesters in Anti-Koodankulam Drive
• Prime Minister indicates of possible Petrol Prices Hike
• British Queen’s celebrations to have Indian Touch
• Jharkhand also to seize Assets of Corrupt officials
• Dalveer Bhandari the first Indian to be judge at International Court of Justice

Baba Ramdev takes on UPA for politicizing nomination of Sachin Posted: 28 Apr 2012 07:12 PM PDT Yoga guru Baba Ramdev Saturday criticised the Congress party for nominating cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar to the Rajya Sabha, calling it a ploy to distract public attention. “Congress, which is a sinking ship, denied him (Tendulkar) the Bharat Ratna but is nominating him to the Rajya Sabha as a tactic to distract the media and people from issues such as black money and corruption,” said Ramdev at a press conference here. “If inducting cricketers and celebrities in parliament can bring back black money back into the country, I request the people in power to induct every cricketer and celebrity,” he said. He claimed that political pressure was being put on Tendulkar from several quarters to accept the nomination. On his decision to join hands with activist Anna Hazare to fight corruption, Ramdev said “political forces” were questioning his decision. “Some corrupt corporates and political leaders are not comfortable with us coming together. So, they keep questioning our unity,” he said. “Neither Anna Hazare nor me claimed that we were going to unite our two campaigns. But we’ll keep coming together whenever needed just like we have planned for June 3,” he said. Ramdev said there was no rift between him and Hazare, and that their “frequencies matched”. He said just and equitable institutions needed to be put in place of corrupt institutions. For this, he would keep a fast along with Hazare at Jantar Mantar on June 3. During the press meet, Ramdev also announced his itinerary for the thrid part of his Bharat Swabhiman Yatra. He said the journey would start May 1 and end June 3 with the fast at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. “During the ‘yatra,’ people in power will try to malign me, which is expected. But when that happens, I request the media to also hear our side of the story so that the complete picture can come out in the public,” he said.

Kedarnath shrine reopened after Six Months Posted: 28 Apr 2012 04:29 PM PDT After a gap of six months portals of famous Himalayan shrine Kedarnath today reopened for pilgrims. The temple, situated in Rudraprayag district at a height of 3,584 meter, was reopened at 0715 hours in the morning according to ‘mahurat’, sources said. The ‘mahurat’ was decided on Mahashivrati at Ukhimath area on February 20. The head priest of the temple, Rawal, performed the ‘Abhishek’ after openeing of the doors, sources said. Thousands of pilgrims flocked the temple after opening of the doors. The Chardhams, comprising the shrines of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri in Garhwal Himalayas reopen for pilgrims in April-May every year after remaining closed for nearly six months during winters as the area remain snow-bound during the period. The annual Chardham yatra is considered as a backbone of the thriving religious tourism in the state that attracts nearly 15-16 lakh pilgrims every year from home and abroad.

Delhi Lokayukta calls for Social boycott of the Corrupts Posted: 28 Apr 2012 03:26 PM PDT Delhi’s anti-corruption ombudsman Manmohan Sarin today advocated the need for social boycott of the corrupt and rued the “indifference” of the silent majority towards the menace. “Unless people condemn, despise, and excommunicate the dishonest, the corrupt will continue to enjoy status and respect in society”, Sarin said speaking at the launch of ‘Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre Helpline’ by Transparency International India. “The indifference of silent majority is the real cause of corruption. Till you are not personally affected by corruption, you look the other way”, he said. The Lokayukta lamented that complicated laws and lengthy judicial procedures help the corrupt to go scot free. “Corrupt people go scot free due to long time of trial and I have no hesitation in saying that the truth is that people with money get away”, he said. “Laws are complicated and are not citizen friendly which gives an opportunity to authorities for corrupt practises”, he said. He asked the media to run a sustained campaign against corruption. “The media should not stop at just one report. It has to be a sustained campaign against wrong. It is the duty of media”, he said. Advocating administrative and financial autonomy for Lokayukta office, he said that in states where the Chief Minister is not included under Lokayukta, the Lokayukta does not face any problem. “States where the Chief Minister does not come under Lokayukta Act, there is no problem faced by the Lokayukta”, he said. He said that instilling moral and ethical values in people at young age can help in tackling corruption. “The fall in moral values in society is also to be blamed for rising corruption. We should catch people young and give them moral and ethical values”, he said. The toll free helpline number of ‘Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre’ by Transparency International India will inform citizen about their legal rights, provide legal assistance and equip them to take action on cases of corruption that they have been victims of. “A victim of corruption can call our helpline and take legal advice from our lawyer. After that if they need any assistance in drafting complaint and approaching the right department, our team will help them”, P S Bawa, Chairman Transparency International India said. Transparency International India is the accredited India chapter of the international civil society organisation based in Berlin.

Amitabh expresses happiness over Sachin’s nomination to RS Posted: 28 Apr 2012 02:16 PM PDT Megastar Amitabh Bachchan today said that actress Rekha and cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar “deserved” to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. “In each session of Parliament, President nominates few set of people for Rajya Sabha from the fields of art, film etc. It is an honorary position. Whoever nominated for this (Rajya Sabha) are deserving people (sic),” Big B told reporters at an event held for promotion of his soon-to-be-released film, ‘Department’. “I remember even (actress) Nargisji was nominated for Rajya Sabha,” he said. However, the nomination of the maestro to the Upper House seems to have not gone down well with actor Sanjay Dutt. “It is an honour to be in Rajya Sabha. I am a die-hard fan of Sachin…he is a pride…jewel of India. But I am not happy that he is a Rajya Sabha member….he should have been the way he is,” Dutt said. When asked if being a parliamentarian will be too demanding for Rekha and Sachin, Bachchan said, “It is their personal decision…leave it to them”. Meanwhile, filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, who was also present on the occasion, evaded direct reply on the issue, saying, “I have no idea about cricket and politics”.

ISRO places RISAT I in its final orbit Posted: 28 Apr 2012 02:14 PM PDT ISRO has said the indigenously built Radar Imaging Satellite (RISAT-1), launched on April 26, has been placed in its final Polar Sun-synchronous Orbit of 536 km height. “PSLV-C19 had placed RISAT-1 in a polar orbit of 470 km X 480 km. As planned, on April 27-28, the satellite propulsion system was used in four orbital manoeuvres to raise the height of the orbit of RISAT-1 to 536 km,” ISRO said in a statement here. The satellite is now in its final orbital configuration and in good health. In the coming days, various elements of the C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar will be tested and calibrated as a prelude to payload operations, it said. “As compared to the optical remote sensing satellites that depend upon sunlight, the Synthetic Aperture Radar of RISAT-1 transmits its own radar pulses (at 5.35 GHz) to study the objects on Earth. This facilitates (i) cloud penetration and (ii) imaging even without sunlight. For RISAT-1, imaging sessions around both 6 AM and 6 PM have been chosen,” it said. The 1,858 kg RISAT-1, whose images will facilitate agriculture and disaster management, was launched on board the PSLV-C19 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, around 90 km from Chennai.

Amnesty International requests PM to release protesters in Anti-Koodankulam Drive Posted: 28 Apr 2012 01:09 PM PDT The Amnesty International has appealed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take steps for immediate release of all protesters arrested in connection with the anti-Koodankulam Nuclear plant agitation and drop “false” charges against them. In a letter to the Prime Minister, a copy of which has been sent to the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy which has been spearheading the stir, they also appealed to Singh to put an immediate end to the “harassment of those resorting to peaceful protests and respect protestors’ rights to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly in accordance with international law.” Amnesty International members also referred to S.P.Udhayakumar, PMANE convenor’s charge that the Indian authorities had “failed” to respond satisfactorily to several site and safety concerns raised by an independent group of experts. They expressed “dismay” that officials belonging to the Home Ministry searched Udhayakumar’s home and that police had “harassed” shop-keepers who were in solidarity with the protesters. “The charges against the protesters constitute a deliberate attempt by the authorities to silence them despite the fact that the protests had been peaceful,” the letter to the Prime Minister said. Amnesty International members who have signed the letter include senior functionary Peter Cattan of Switzerland. A copy of the letter was released to the press here today.

Prime Minister indicates of possible Petrol Prices Hike Posted: 28 Apr 2012 12:09 PM PDT Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday hinted at an impending hike in fuel prices saying that there is need for such an exercise to balance the effects of the spiralling oil import bill. “With imports accounting for about 80 percent of our crude supplies, the spiralling prices of crude in the international market have put a severe strain on our import bill,” Singh said in a speech while inaugurating a refinery here. “We also need to rationalize prices and at the same time ensure that the poor and needy are shielded from the effects of such a rationalization,” he said. The prime minister’s comments came in the wake of demands by oil marketing companies (OMCs) which say they either be allowed to raise petrol prices or the government should compensate them for the underrecoveries. The OMCs say their inability to raise prices from Dec 16, 2011 to March 31, 2012 has resulted in total under-recovery of Rs.2,287 crore. Earlier this month, they virtually threatened to increase petrol prices by Rs.8.04 a litre, asking the government to otherwise cut excise duty on petrol and give them Rs.49 crore a day in compensation. The government had deregulated petrol pricing since June 2010 but continues to control and subsidise the prices of diesel, kerosene and cooking gas on political considerations. The prime minister said India faced an enormous challenge on the energy front and domestic sources of crude oil and gas were inadequate to meet the needs of a growing economy. “The challenges we face on the energy front are formidable. We need adequate supplies of energy at affordable prices. Domestic sources of crude oil and gas are inadequate to meet the growing demands of our rapidly expanding economy,” he said. India also needed to conserve energy and there was “no room for inefficient and wasteful usage of fuel”, said the prime minister. The Rs.21,500-crore Guru Gobind Singh Refinery at Phullokari village near Bathinda town in southwest Punjab that Singh inaugurated is a joint venture of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Mittal Energy Investment Pte Ltd (MEL), Singapore, a Lakshmi N. Mittal group company. MEL has 49 percent stake in the refinery project. The project had become fully operational recently.

British Queen’s celebrations to have Indian Touch Posted: 28 Apr 2012 09:31 AM PDT The 60 Years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign will be celebrated in Britain with Rajasthani touch. The 11-member Jaipur Maharaja Brass Band will perform in London June 2 and 3 rubbing shoulders with famous artists like Elton John in presence of heads of several states and world renowned personalities. “The organising committee of these events examined our previous international performances over the past ten years and selected the Jaipur Maharaja Brass Band to perform at London,” the band’s group leader Amrit Hussain said. “It is a very big event and we are unable to express our happiness in words. We expect to enthrall the audience and our aim is to give a taste of Indian music to the international audience with Indian and Rajasthani traditional music with a mix of Western instruments,” he added. The band will use a mix of traditional Indian and Western instruments to perform popular Bollywood, jazz, pop and self-composed music, making it the first group from India to perform at such an event, Hussain claimed. He said over the past nine years, the band has performed at about 600 concerts in 40 countries. It has participated in prestigious music festivals like Sziget (Hungary), Paleo (Switzerland), and Pori Jazz Fest (Finland). Originating from Jaipur, the city of the maharajas, the band consists of seven to eight musicians, a female traditional Rajasthani dancer and a juggler or fire eater. They play a range of traditional brass instruments, including trumpets, trombones, tubas, clarinets, tabla, base drum and saxophones and perform traditional dances. Amrit said that roots of the Indian brass band music go deep into the subcontinent’s colonial past. “Introduced in the middle of the 18th century by the British, thousands of brass bands play at carnivals, national or religious festivals and local marriage celebrations across the country. In Rajasthan alone, there are over 2,000 brass bands performing regularly,” he added. “We have tried to include in our team the best performers out of the 2,000-odd brass bands,” he added.

Jharkhand also to seize Assets of Corrupt officials Posted: 28 Apr 2012 08:24 AM PDT In a move to curb corruption in government offices, Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda has given his consent to an ordinance to set up special courts which will have the power to seize/attach properties of corrupt officials. “Chief Minister Munda has given his approval to set up ‘Jharkhand special court ordinance 2012′. The ordinance has been sent to the governor for notification,” an official of the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) told IANS Saturday. The official added: “The vigilance courts are over-burdened with corruption cases. The tainted officers sell or transfer their properties during case trials. With this ordinance, the special courts would hear the cases fast and would have the power to seize properties of the tainted officers.” The special courts will issue notices within 30 days of the petition against the tainted officers. To fight corruption in government offices, Jharkhand has already formulated the Right to Services Act and the Electronic Delivery Services Act.

Dalveer Bhandari the first Indian to be judge at International Court of Justice Posted: 28 Apr 2012 01:59 AM PDT India’s nominee, Justice Dalveer Bhandari, a sitting judge of the Supreme Court, has been elected to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the first time an Indian has managed to get this key international post in over two decades. Bhandari secured 122 votes in the United Nations General Assembly against 58 for his Filipino rival, Syed Akbaruddin, the spokesperson of the external affairs, said here. In simultaneous elections Friday at the UN headquarters in New York, Bhandari also secured an absolute majority in the Security Council. In the election to the ICJ, a primary judicial organ of the United Nations, commonly referred to as the World Court, Bhandari was locked in a fierce contest with Justice Florentino P. Feliciano of the Philippines. Bhadari takes the place of Awn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh of Jordan who resigned from the Asia-Pacific region seat at the end of 2011. An eminent legal luminary, Bhandari will serve the remainder of the term 2012-18. India was last represented at the ICJ more than two decades ago. The 64-year-old Justice Bhandari has variegated experience in international law and is well-versed with the working of the UN. Bhandari has been on India’s apex court since 2005 and has served in the higher Indian judiciary for over two decades. He will retire in September this year. He served as the chairperson of the Delhi Centre of the International Law Association for several years. Bhandari is also a member of leading international academic and legal bodies and is closely associated with a large number of committees dealing with various aspects of international law such as: human rights, biotechnology, sustainable development, securities regulation, trade, nuclear weapons, non-proliferation and contemporary international law and space. Acknowledging his outstanding contribution, the Northwestern University School of Law, Chicago, US while celebrating its 150 Years (1859-2009) selected Bhandari as one of its 16 most illustrious and distinguished alumni. In New Delhi, the Supreme Court Thursday had refused to quash Bhandari’s nomination as a judge for the ICJ. A bench of justices Altamas Kabir, J Chelameswar and Ranjan Gogoi initially wanted to outrightly dismiss the plea for quashing Justice Bhandari’s nomination for the ICJ, but later allowed counsel Prashant Bhushan to withdraw it, treating it as “dismissed as withdrawn.” Established in June 1945 by the charter of the United Nations, in The Hague, Netherlands, ICJ’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorised United Nations organs and specialised agencies.

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• India successfully tests Naval Light Combat Aircraft
• Madhuri Dixit to return with Gulab Gang
• Samsung’s Operating Profit soar by 98 percent
• Meet Government Officer who refused his Dearness Allowance
• How Empowered Village Women fight against Corruption
• Slum Children to spread Gandhi’s Message in United States
• Team from Bihar to represent India in Imagine Cup at Australia
• Seven students to represent India at US science fair
• Kerala to preserve its only Tribal village
• Cops in Bengal dismissed for misbehaving with Woman

India successfully tests Naval Light Combat Aircraft Posted: 27 Apr 2012 06:38 PM PDT India has conducted the maiden flight of the naval version of its Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) over this tech hub under a partially cloudy sky. ‘With the successful maiden flight of the LCA’s naval version, India has joined another elite club of countries capable of design, development, manufacture and testing of fourth generation carrier borne fly-by-wire ski take off but arrested recovery (Stobar) aircraft,’ defence minister’s scientific advisor V.K. Saraswat said here. The test sortie of the LCA naval prototype (NP-1) was conducted for about 20 minutes by Air Commodore T.A. Maolankar with Wing Commander Maltesh Prabhu as co-pilot of the national flight test centre. ‘The flight performance was outstanding. The naval version is the first attempt to provide a complete marine force multiplier that will give unique battle punch to the naval aviation arm of the 21st century to fulfill national dream of blue waters,’ an elated Saraswat told reporters here. Though the Indian naval version is the second Stobar in the world after the Russian deck based aircraft, it will be the only carrier borne fighter in the light category. ‘We have flown on the designated flight path up to 30 nautical miles from the base touching a top speed of 450 km from 50 km at take-off and touched an altitude of about 10,000 feet above mean sea level. We also did close formation and slowed down to land smoothly,’ Maolankar said hours after the test flight. Though the naval version project of the LCA was sanctioned in 2003 with a budget of Rs.1,900 crore for its development cost, the maiden test flight was delayed by about five years due to various factors. With the indigenously built Kaveri aero engine still on the test bed, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADEA) of the state-run Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) has been forced to use the GE-F-404IN20 engine of the US-based General Electric (GE). The naval version of the LCA is expected to replace the ageing fleet of the British built Sea Harrier aircraft of the Indian Navy and complement its fleet of MiG-29 carrier aircraft.

Madhuri Dixit to return with Gulab Gang Posted: 27 Apr 2012 05:33 PM PDT Bollywood diva Madhuri Dixit seems to be on movie signing spree. After Vishal Bhardwaj’s “Dedh Ishqiya”, the actress has accepted Anubhav Sinha’s “Gulab Gang”. “Just signed a second film called ‘Gulab Gang’! Go girl power! It is to be produced by Anubhav Sinha, and directed by Soumik Sen,” Madhuri wrote on her Facebook page. However, no further details on Madhuri’s new project are available. “Dedh Ishqiya” is sequel to 2010 film “Ishqiya”, which featured Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi. While Naseer and Arshad reprise their roles, Vidya’s place has been taken by Madhuri in the film. The actress is set to return to the small screen also as the judge of the fifth season of “Jhalak Dikhla Jaa” and has started shooting for its promos. “Meanwhile, on my way to shooting promos for ‘Jhalak Dikla Ja’. The team is awesome and I think this season should be great!” she posted.

Samsung’s Operating Profit soar by 98 percent Posted: 27 Apr 2012 04:31 PM PDT Samsung Electronics posted its fresh record high of operating profit in the first quarter, a regulatory filing showed Friday. Consolidated operating profit reached a new record of 5.85 trillion won ($5.16 billion) in the first quarter, up a whopping 98.42 percent from a year earlier, according to the regulatory filing. From three months before, the figure jumped 10.46 percent, reported Xinhua. The results were larger than the company’s preliminary estimate of 5.8 trillion won ($5.12 billion) announced earlier this month, and it topped the previous record high of 5.3 trillion won ($4.68 billion) tallied in the fourth quarter of 2011. Sales expanded 22.4 percent on-year to 45.27 trillion won ($39.9 billion) in the three months ending March 31, and net profit surged 81.29 percent to 5.05 trillion won ($4.46 billion). The revenue results were slightly higher than an earlier estimate of 45 trillion won ($39.8 billion).

Meet Government Officer who refused his Dearness Allowance Posted: 27 Apr 2012 03:25 PM PDT Kolkata resident Hiralal Burman working as assistant accounts officer Indian Audits and Accounts department has refused to accept his increased allowance to protest the poor DA hike for workers under the 100-day rural jobs scheme. Burman had shot off a letter to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India last year after the central government decided to raise the dearness allowance by seven percent in July 2011. “I don’t want the seven percent increased DA. It is a small token of protest from an Indian against the indifference the union government has shown towards workers in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA),” Burman told IANS. While after the hike, he gets around Rs.1,600 in DA, he says workers in West Bengal used to get Rs.130 as variable dearness alloance (VDA) under MGNREGA and since April have been getting Rs.136 – a meagre increase of Rs.6. He feels though central and state government employees get compensated whenever there is a rise in price of essentials, labourers under the scheme suffer as the VDA hike under MGNREGA is nominal. Burman, a government employee for 17 years, has been doing voluntary service in several districts with the aim of improving the living standards of the underprivileged. “First of all, poor people who look up to the 100 days employment scheme are not getting full 100 days of work. On top of that, the VDA hike for them is very meagre. The hiked VDA in no way can be compared with the ever-increasing inflation,” said Burman, who is in his mid-40s. Ironically, despite his protests, he continues to receive the hiked amount of DA as there is no law to deduct the increased sum from the salary. “Even after so many months I continue to get an increased DA. I have informed senior officials, but they have told me there is no specific law to deduct the increased sum. I hope after this news comes up, something concrete will happen,” he said. Earlier too he has declined to take honorariums for working extra hours. “Twice I have declined honorariums/special pay offered for working extra hours. I felt that the salary I receive is enough for me; so I refused those honorariums,” he said. Burman has made it a habit of visiting the rural parts of the state every Sunday and help illiterate villagers in getting their dues under government schemes and policies. “There are lots of pro-people policies for the poor, but the problem is most villagers are illiterate and don’t know how to take advantage of these schemes. So I help them by writing applications and other official chores.” Burman, a commerce graduate, has been working among the poor and the marginalised for the last 10-12 years.

How Empowered Village Women fight against Corruption Posted: 27 Apr 2012 02:22 PM PDT Seema Saroj, a resident of Pratapgarh district in Uttar Pradesh, was denied payment under the rural jobs scheme for months. She then joined Nari Sangh, a women’s group working for the rights of people, and took on the authorities to get her pending dues. Saroj is one among over 80,000 women from 666 gram panchayats in nine districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh who have, under the umbrella of the Nari Sangh, been successfully fighting corruption in schemes like the Public Distribution System (PDS) and the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA). Launched in 2007 by the NGO People’s Action for National Integration (PANI) with the support of Mumbai-based Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, the Nari Sangh is a project for empowering rural women. It focusses on developing leadership qualities among women and spreading awareness about their entitlements like the right to work, right to food and right to health. As many as 522 women from the group have been elected to gram panchayats. Saroj told IANS: “Most of us did not know how much ration we were entitled to and used to take whatever the PDS shop-owner gave us. Similarly we were told that under NREGA, work will only be given to men and even they were not paid. “I attended some of the meetings of Nari Sangh and came to know what I was entitled to. I then went to the block development officer in my area and asked why work was not given to women under NREGA. He then asked the officer concerned to provide us work,” said the frail woman, draped in a cotton sari. It was not easy for these veil-clad women to come out of their traditional set-ups. Most of them had to convince their husbands and in-laws before they could become a Nari Sangh member. “My husband was against my going out and participating in such meetings. Even my neighbours said bad things about me to my in-laws. Initially, I came out of the house on the pretext of getting fodder for cattle. We then used to hold small meetings and talk about problems with other members of the group and how it should be sorted out,” Badka Devi of Azamgarh district told IANS. Fighting all odds, these women have now earned the respect of other village residents and are approached by villagers for all kinds of help. “Every official from development officer to tehsildar and health officer to collector of the district knows about Nari Sangh and we are given a patient hearing if we approach them with a problem. This project has made us self-confident and we are now aware of our rights,” Chaviraji Devi, a member of the Nari Sangh from Mau district, told IANS. Shashi Bhushan, programme director of PANI, said these women have been doing a tremendous job and the project will soon be extended to other districts in the state. “It was a pilot project and we trained women in villages to fight for their rights. Now these women have taken control of all things in their villages and are aware of their rights. They are confident enough to take on the authorities if their rights are being violated,” said Bhushan. Nayana Chowdhury, senior programme officer, Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, says the project is very cost- efficient as the annual spending per family is Rs.240. “The best part of the project is that it is very cost-effective and we don’t have to spend a lot of money on training women. It has gone beyond our expectation and we are trying to study if the model can be replicated in other areas too,” said Chowdhury.

Slum Children to spread Gandhi’s Message in United States Posted: 27 Apr 2012 01:21 PM PDT Sixteen children from the slums of Ahmedabad in Gujarat, will tour the United States from May 6 to June 16 to spread Mahatma Gandhi’s message of “Oneness” through a 90 minute dance-drama. Called “Ekatva” (Oneness), the show sharing a “message of love, inspiration, and a call to action: to push the world closer to oneness and peace” will be staged in Chicago, Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, Austin, Atlanta and Montclair and New Jersey. “Ekatva” was inspired by a similar project called “Ekta” (Unity), which was created in 2000 by Manav Sadhna, a nonprofit based at the Mahatma Gandhi Ashram, and teachers from the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, the organisers said. In keeping with the mission of Manav Sadhna, the children “will not only perform in the US, but also work with other nonprofits, serve the underprivileged in the area, help clean parts of the city, work to connect different religions, and uplift the spirit of humanity.” “It sounds like a large task for small people – but I have learned every day in working with these children, that they are not ‘small’ in any way -they are capable of so much,” said “Ekatva” director Nimesh Patel, a Wharton Business School graduate and former hip-hop artist. Patel has become a full-time volunteer for the past two and half years to lead these children and the vision of the “Ekatva” experiment. The performance is directed and choreographed by Mallika Sarabhai and the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts. A wide range of international organizations including Project Ahimsa have contributed to supporting the “Ekatva” tour and performance.

Team from Bihar to represent India in Imagine Cup at Australia Posted: 27 Apr 2012 03:44 AM PDT A team from Patna’s Birla Institute of Technology has won the right to represent India at the worldwide finals of a tech competition in Sydney with its solution for enhancing the learning abilities of school students suffering from dyslexia. “We hope our project does well there too, but either way, we will cherish the whole experience for a lifetime. We have learnt so much,” a representative of The D Labs said of the July finals of the Microsoft Imagine Cup 2012. The D Labs was chosen as the best in software design category. In addition, it also took top honours in the local accessibility awards. Its award winning entry records minute details about a child’s activities and then creates solutions suited to his or her needs and orients games and exercises to address those needs. Now in its 10th year, the Imagine Cup saw over 50,000 students from colleges across India register this year for eight categories. In the most prestigious category, the Software Design, the top seven teams were shortlisted and competed for the first prize and the honor of representing the country at the global finals. These teams showcased their innovative projects before an eminent panel of judges with a mix of academicians and industry representatives. Imagine Cup is a year-long activity open to students across the globe. The competition begins with local, regional and online contests, followed by screening of best projects from each country and with winners from these legs participating in the global finals held at a different location every year. In keeping with its 10th anniversary, the competition this year challenged the students to help solve one of the many tough problems that the world is facing today, such as those identified by the United Nations in its Millennium Development Goals from eradicating extreme poverty and hunger to ensuring environment sustainability.

Seven students to represent India at US science fair Posted: 27 Apr 2012 02:40 AM PDT Seven school students from across the country who excelled in a national science project will go to the US to compete with more than 1,600 others from over 60 countries at a global fair, officials said Thursday. Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Kapil Sibal Thursday congratulated the seven students, who won the national level science projects-India Initiative for Research and Innovation in Science (IRIS). The seven students who won the IRIS projects will now travel to the US to compete with more than 1,600 students from over 60 countries around the world, at the 2012 International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Pittsburg, an official statement said. Congratulating the seven students, Sibal said: “Through this programme, we are endeavouring to reform the current state with an emphasis on skill development by unlocking the creative talent within the child. The paradigm shift is on the anvil.” “Learning and education must be child-centric to enable a child to explore the world around him and face the future with confidence and assurance,” he added. Among the seven students, three are from Delhi – Saral Baweja, Nishi Paliwal (both from Maharaja Agrasen Public School) and Shubham Goyal (DPS). Raghavendra Ramachandran from Chennai, Gargi Pare from Madhya Pradesh, Omkar Singh Gujaral from West Bengal and Sindura Saraswati from Karnataka are the other four who will be going to the US. The week-long science fair beginning in the second week of May is an opportunity for the best young minds in the world to come together to share ideas and showcase cutting-edge projects, the statement added.

Kerala to preserve its only Tribal village Posted: 27 Apr 2012 01:38 AM PDT Kerala has decided to seek the intervention of National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) to conserve and preserve the traditional way of life of the state’s only tribal village, Idamalakkudi. A team of the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) recently visited the village inhabited by Muthuvan tribe, and found that some developments that had taken place there were not in tune with the eco-system. Located in Idukki district, inside the forest, Idamalakkudi gram panchayat is spread over 106 sq km area, about 270 km from here. It has a population of 2,236 — comprising 1,196 men and 1,040 women. The KSBB feels that the intervention was required in areas like housing, electrification, drinking water and agricultural practices. KSBB member secretary K.P. Laladhas, who led the team to the village early this month, said he was surprised to see tin-sheet roofs in the area. The tribals’ traditional houses are environment-friendly huts made of locally available raw materials like wooden frames, bamboo sticks and small stones in combination with pasty soil. “The need for our intervention is to enhance the strength of the huts for more durability by using eco-friendly materials,” said Laladhas. Electrification in Idamalakkudi is through solar energy only, but a decade old solar panels are in poor working condition. For drinking water, the biggest problem is lack of proper storage facility due to hilly terrain. “Construction of check dams and introduction of rain water harvesting has to be taken up,” he said. Rice, ragi, vegetables and cash crops, like cardamom and pepper, are cultivated but the tribals have no method to store the excess, he rued.

Cops in Bengal dismissed for misbehaving with Woman Posted: 27 Apr 2012 12:35 AM PDT Two officers of a city police station were suspended for allegedly misbehaving with a woman who had come to lodge a complaint, a police official said Thursday. “Additional officer-in-charge of Kalighat Police station Kalyan Kumar Dutta and sub- inspector Rabindranath Gupta have been suspended and departmental proceedings initiated against them,” said a senior police officer. On April 23, a woman had gone to the Kalighat police station to register a complaint against her husband and other members of his family for allegedly abusing her physically. The two police personnel allegedly made indecent comments against her. “The officer told me since your husband is not around, you need a boyfriend… They made incident remarks. I had approached the police station for justice but in return got misbehaviour,” said the woman. It was only after the woman approached the media that the complaint was registered and the two officers were suspended. The woman’s husband has also been arrested. Earlier in February this year, two officers of the Park Street Police station were removed from active duty and departmental proceedings were initiated against them after they misbehaved with a woman who had gone their to file a complaint for an alleged rape.

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