Sunday, 2 September 2012

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

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

Green Activist to stay aloof Treehouse to protest Coal Mining

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 06:30 AM PDT

A Greenpeace activist has  launched a novel protest against coal mining at the expense of forests by climbing a tree where he plans to stay for a month at Chandrapur Maharashtra.

Brikesh Singh, the activist of the international NGO, would live in a tree-house, specially put together for this purpose. The tree is located on the fringes of buffer zone of Tadoba–Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR), on the outskirts of the city.

Brikesh said he was trying to draw the attention of over 120 delegates who would be attending the forthcoming `UN Convention on Biological Diversity’ at Hyderabad. “We need forests rather than coal,” he said.

“My mission is to mobilise people of the area against destruction of forests for coal mining and also to oppose the government that has least priority for protection of forests and wildlife.”

The tree-house has solar-powered gadgets, and Brikesh plans to be in touch with the outside world through a laptop. The area where the tree stands has a coal mine on one side. Local NGOs have extended support to the protest

Constitution can replace God says Chief Justice of India

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 05:30 AM PDT

The Constitution can replace the religious texts in today’s times, Chief Justice of India S H Kapadia said at Aurangabad Maharashtra.

“The Constitution should be studied by Indians to know about citizens’ rights. If you read it, there is no need to read the religious books as you may find God in our Constitution.

Gaining knowledge of the Constitution would be a real homage to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar,” he said, delivering a lecture on `Constitutional Ethics’ at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University .

Chief Justice of Bombay High Court Justice Mohit Shah was also present on this occasion. “I belong to the Parsi community and would have never thought of becoming the Chief Justice anywhere (else) in the world. It is only in India that it was possible due to the Constitution,” said the CJI.

The judges should be acquainted with multiple fields of knowledge, which can help them in the court, he said. Judges can learn a lot from “constructive criticism” but not from “destructive criticism”, he said.

Poverty was “a basic violation of human rights”, he said, talking about the need to have a “balanced” society

Kingfisher Airlines to operate as long as it meets Passengers Safety Regulations

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 04:30 AM PDT

Kingfisher Airlines will be allowed to operate as long as it does not compromise with safety.

“We cannot shut down the airline (Kingfisher) till there are safety issues involved,” Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a tour operators convention.

The Vijay Mallya-promoted full service carrier, facing severe funding crunch, has not paid salaries to most of its employees, including pilots and engineers, for long, triggering calls for strikes over the last couple of months.

Responding to a query on Air India, the Minister said the national carrier has shown some improvement but it needs to do more. The government has committed a Rs 30,000-crore financial support package to Air India, he said adding it will have to be competitive with other players in the domestic space.

Earlier, addressing the seminar, Singh said tourism and civil aviation sectors are inter-linked and are vital for the economic development of the country.

“The growth of civil aviation and tourism sector are inter-dependent and they complement each other. The most important contribution that aviation makes to the economy is through catalytic impact on the performance of other sectors and as a facilitator of their growth,” he said.

Stating that the airlines industry is going through a severe financial crisis, Singh said the government has taken number of steps to address the financial issues of the industry. “The issue of allowing FDI in airlines is also under active consideration of the government,” he added.

Amitabh Bachchan gives all Actors a unique Place

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 03:30 AM PDT

Amitabh BachchanMegastar Amitabh Bachchann who is known to be punctual, says there is nothing much in him for people to copy, but he would like everyone to follow punctuality.

“I don’t think I have anything enough in me to be copied. But if I would be pushed to answer it, then I would say that it should be my punctuality which everyone should copy,” Bachchan said at an event in Mumbai.

Referring to a recent poll conducted by a leading news channel that voted Big B as the best actor, he said he did not believe in such polls. “I want to know who does these polls. They have no truth in them. All actors have their own places in the industry. To choose one over the other is not fair,” he said.

Big B who is associated with several social causes like polio, save the girl child said that he believes in working actively towards it. “I am associated with many social causes… I believe in working towards it and not talking about it,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bachchan today donated his jeans to Parikrma Humanity Foundation’s programme – Parikrama’s Jeanaration, an innovative campaign to raise funds to send the poorest children to the best colleges.

The initiative will see 25 of the biggest stars of Bollywood and from South cinema like Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwariya Rai, Kareena Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Saif Ali Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Suriya, R Madhavan and Dhanush participating in the programme.

Indian Expressways becoming the garden of Deaths

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 02:30 AM PDT

 Is India still waking up to the autobahn culture? With three accidents and eight deaths in just a week on the spanking new six-lane Yamuna Expressway between Noida and Agra, that was the question doing the rounds.

On Aug 25, a 35-year-old man from Delhi died and a woman and two children from his family were injured in an accident. Four days after that, on Aug 29, five people were killed when their truck overturned following a tyre burst. And, on Friday, two others were killed when their tractor overturned, also after a tyre burst.

With the deaths coming just days after the Aug 9 inauguration of the 165-km expressway, which cuts down travel time from New Delhi to the city of the Taj to just two-and-a-half hours, concerns are being raised.

With an estimated 100,000 vehicles crossing the expressway every day and the “dependence of most motorists” on this route increasing manifold, say locals, the frequency of road accidents on this e-way has led to a degree of consternation even in the state government.

“High speed is a problem and I think the fact that the roads are cemented adds to the trouble,” conceded a senior official.

He added that Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had expressed his concern at the accidents and had directed officials concerned to “talk it out with the Jaypee group”.

Jaypee Infra and the Uttar Pradesh government had described the Public-Partnership-Project (PPP) as one which would usher in a new era of development in the state.

Soon after inaugurating the expressway on Aug 9 Akhilesh Yadav had told IANS that he was worried about the speed limits on the expressway and feared for loss of life of motorists.

“While the upper limit is fixed at 100 kmph but am not too sure whether people would adhere to it once they are behind the wheel,” Akhilesh Yadav had said.

His uncle and senior Samajwadi party (SP) leader Ram Gopal Yadav had, however, requested officials to “explore possibilities” to up the speed limit to 120 or more.

“100 ki speed par to driver ko susti aa jayegi,” (the driver will feel lethargic if he is restricted to a speed of 100 kmph ) he had said.

With tyre bursts behind two of the three accidents, developers are now getting speed and maintenance advisories published in forms of printed material to be handed over to motorists before they enter the expressway.

Several traffic warnings – only stop on left shoulders, do not walk on the road, maintaining of speed limits, safe and alcohol free driving – already dot the stretch, a Jaypee Infra official said.

“We already have three lanes clearly marked based on the speeds of driving vehicles, beyond the safety steps we have taken, drivers have to be responsible,” the official said.

More mobile speed radars, cameras and sensors will soon be installed, an official said.

Sameer Gaur, joint managing director of the Jaypee group, points out that when a car enters through the zero point, the driver is explained the traffic rules and the precautions to be taken; for people breaching the rules, the control room passes on the information to the next toll plaza and the police is immediately informed.

Special Train from Guwahati departs with people returning to Bangalore

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 01:36 AM PDT

A special train to Bangalore left a Guwahati railway station on Saturday afternoon to help people from the northeast return to their places of study or work in southern states after their mass exodus last month over fear of attacks.

The train started from the railway station at Paltan Bazar around 2.40 p.m. and would reach Bangalore Monday evening.

Another special train is scheduled to leave for the same destination Sep 5, said Assam Environment and Forests Minister Rockybul Hussain, who met the passengers before the train’s departure.

A 10-member special security team of Assam Police joined Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel for boosting the special train’s security.

Hussain and Assam Agriculture, Horticulture and Food Processing Minister Nilamoni Sen Deka bid farewell to the passengers at the railway station.

After reaching Bangalore, the train would start its return journey to Guwahati Tuesday, railway sources said.

While most of the passengers were people from Assam and other northeastern states working in Bangalore and other southern cities, some of them were also students – who decided to return after the assurance by the respective state governments.

Although the train was scheduled for departure at 1.15 p.m., it got delayed as the authorities had to add one more compartment to it due to the rush. The train included 18 sleeper-class coaches.

“When we came to the station we saw some people on the wait list. We convinced the railway officials to attach one more compartment to accommodate them,” said Hussain.

He said the government would run another special train Sep 5.

The exodus of people from the northeast from southern states started Aug 15 after rumours went viral through internet, SMS and MMS threatening them to return to their states before Aug 20 or face dire consequences.

The Karnataka government arranged nine special trains from Bangalore to Guwahati after thousands of people gathered at Bangalore railway station following the threats.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister R. Ashoka visited Assam and Manipur Aug 25-26 to assure northeastern states of the security in Bangalore and requested the people to return.

Ashoka asked Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to arrange for special trains to facilitate the return of the people to Bangalore and other places.

Actor Vidyut Jammwal becomes real life Hero by nabbing thieves

Posted: 02 Sep 2012 12:30 AM PDT

Actor Vidyut Jammwal turned into a real-life action hero when he managed to nab two thieves who broke into his house.

“A few days ago, a couple of thieves broke into his house assuming that the house was empty and unattended. Vidyut was in the room inside and came out hearing the sound in the living room,” said a source.

“On seeing Vidyut, the intruders attacked him with the intention of injuring him. But they couldn’t succeed,” the source added.

The “Force” actor is trained in martial arts, especially Kalaripayattu.

The source also revealed that after brawl with the thieves, he reported them to the police and had them picked up from his house.

Vidyut’s official spokesperson confirmed the incident, which happened earlier this week.

Vipul Mehta from Amritsar is winner of Indian Idol 6

Posted: 01 Sep 2012 11:30 PM PDT

Mumbai: It was a tough call – three boys, all from Punjab, all excellent singers with a great audience connect. But it is Vipul Mehta from Amritsar, who bagged the “Indian Idol 6″ title here Saturday night at a glittering grand finale.

The 21-year-old pipped Devendra Pal Singh, 17, and Amit Kumar, 20, for the winner’s trophy, a cash prize of Rs.50 lakh from Sony channel, a Nissan Micra car, a Suzuki Hayate bike, Rs. 3 lakh from Max Life Insurance and a contract to record his own music album.

Mehta was on top of the world when Kareena Kapoor along with filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar announced his name for the winner’s position. The actress was here to promote her film “Heroine”.

“I am really very happy. I thank god for bringing me where I stand today. I would like to thank the audience too for supporting me. I am overwhelmed to see my grandfather’s dream coming true,” said an emotional Mehta after the win.

Mehta had earlier also participated in singing reality show “Voice of India – Season 2″ in 2008, but couldn’t make it to the top three. This time he was lucky.

He faced stiff and neck-to-neck competition as both the other contenders had equally powerful, melodious and heartwarming voices.

The young and talented singers displayed their ability to sing all genres during the show, but there had to be one winner.

The finale was a starry affair with judges Anu Malik, Salim Merchant, Sunidhi Chauhan and Asha Bhosle, who were in their true spirits, cheering for all the contestants.

While Sunidhi, Salim and Asha performed with the three contestants, Sunidhi and Asha also enthralled audience with their stand alone performances.

Asha brought alive the yesteryear era with songs like “Aaiye meherban”, “Yeh mera dil”, “Dum maaro dum” and “Piya tu”, and Sunidhi sang “Halkat jawani” from “Heroine”. She also matched steps
with Kareena on the stage.

Actors Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra added to the star power as they came to promote their forthcoming film “Barfi!” on the “Indian Idol 6″ sets.

The finalists paid tribute to the three generations of Bollywood’s Kapoor clan. While Amit sang Raj Kapoor’s song “Kehta hai joker”, Devender sang Rishi’s “Bachna aae haseeno” and Vipul crooned Ranbir’s “Sadda haq”.

Cousins Ranbir and Kareena came separately on the show, which was shot at Film City in Goregaon here.

Indian Army to bust illegal arms in Kokrajhar and Dhubri

Posted: 01 Sep 2012 10:30 PM PDT

The army, deployed in Assam’s troubled Kokrajhar district, has started an operation to seize all illegal arms and ammunition there.

“The army has started an operation in the district today (Saturday). The operation will continue till all the illegal arms and ammunition are seized in Kokrajhar,” said a highly-placed source.

The sources indicated that similar operations might also be carried out in all the areas of Bodoland Territorial Areas Districts (BTAD) and in Dhubri.

Assam’s opposition All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) had demanded that the central as well as the state governments take steps for seizure of all illegal arms and ammunition in BTAD for establishing lasting peace in the area where clashes between Bodos and Bengali-speaking Muslim settlers had led to 95 people being killed and over four lakh people displaced.

AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal had also met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and demanded that the BTC council be dissolved as it had failed to provide security to the non-Bodos living in BTAD and that all the illegal arms and ammunition be seized.

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had earlier also asked the police and security forces deployed in the violence-hit districts to seize illegal arms.

Police said automatic firearms have been used in the last four to five days of the violence in three districts.

The four BTAD districts – the Bodo heartland of Assam – had been a hotbed of militancy earlier.

While the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT) outfit has been disbanded and its leaders now run the administration in the four districts, many of its members are reported to possess illegal arms, which they did not deposit while surrendering.

Similarly, the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) now has two groups — one group of surrendered militants who expressed their willingness to sit for peace talks and the anti-talks faction, headed by Ranjan Daimnary, which also reportedly possesses a lot of illegal weapons.

Schools in Delhi to refund excess fees to Students

Posted: 01 Sep 2012 09:37 PM PDT

Sixty-four private city schools have illegally collected higher fee from students since September 2008, a committee has informed the Delhi High Court while recommending a refund of the money with 9 percent per annum interest.

The 600-page interim report of Justice Anil Dev Singh Committee, which randomly examined the accounts of 200 schools, was opened by a special bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Siddharth Mridul Friday.

The committee was constituted about a year ago to submit a report on the determination of fees in the unaided schools in Delhi.

Its first interim report was based on an examination of 200 unaided private schools out of a total 1,172 institutions.

In the case of 13 schools, the committee found that either no records were maintained or the accounts were fudged. It recommended strict action against these schools.

“The committee recommends that the schools be directed to refund the increased monthly fee from September 2008 till the date of actual refund along with the interest at the rate of 9 percent per annum,” the report said.

It also raised questions on the working of the department of education as it did not act in accordance with the law in inspecting the schools.

“The regulatory mechanism envisaged by the law has been thrown to the winds by the directorate of education. Schools are enjoying total and unbridled freedom in acting in the manner they like,” the report said.

“Right from the stage of granting recognition, the lack of supervisory control of the directorate is writ large. Hardly any inspections are done and even if they are, they are conducted in a most perfunctory manner,” the report said.

The bench July 20 directed the committee to submit a report on the fee hike in unaided private schools in Delhi.

After the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission, the schools increased the fees citing additional financial burden due to increased salaries of teachers.

The court gave directions for setting up a committee to audit the accounts of each of the schools to ascertain if the fee hike by them was required.

The committee also said that there were 143 schools which increased the fee without implementing the Sixth Pay Commission.

Many of the schools in the city were operating without even a bank account and years after years they were granted recognition, it said.

Several of the schools have not been maintaining proper accounts and were not getting their accounts audited as required by the law, and were also not filing annual returns, the report said.

“Some of the schools have been fabricating their accounts and getting various types of certificates from chartered accountants which do not qualify as audit reports,” said the report.

Advocate Ashok Agarwal, appearing for a group of parents, earlier said that if the report was submitted “it would be a great relief to the exploited parents, as they would be entitled to refund of the excess fee recovered from them by schools”.

The court would next hear the matter Sep 14.
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