| Biharprabha News Inbox Edition |
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We are here again with few interesting stories in Bihar. |
| - World Environment Day Celebrated at Patna with action
PATNA: With an aim to protect the environment which is getting inhospitable day by day, various activities were organized in the city to mark World Environment Day on Sunday. The Patna circle of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) planted 15 saplings, including some medicinal ones, at the archaeological site in Kumhrar. ASI superintending archaeologist [...] Read it Online - IITians guide future IITians from the state
PATNA: Hundreds of engineering aspirants from Bihar and Jharkhand received free expert counselling from IIT-Kharagpur students here on Sunday. A group of 24 IITians, working under the aegis of IITians for Youth (IFY), organized a daylong counselling workshop, CONSEJERIA- 2011, at the S K Science centre here. About 200 engineering aspirants who have either scored [...] Read it Online - Girls outperform boys in intermediate exams
PATNA: Girl students maintained their track record of registering spectacular performance even this year. They, however, stole the thunder from boys both in the Intermediate science and commerce faculties, 2011, the results of which human resource development (HRD) minister P K Shahi formally announced on Sunday on the premises of the Bihar School Examination Board [...] Read it Online - Nitish criticizes Center for action against Baba Ramdev
Patna, Jun 5 (PTI) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today slammed UPA government at the Centre for its use of ”brute force” to evict yoga guru Baba Ramdev and his supporters from Ramlila grounds in Delhi describing it as a ”major blow to democracy”. “The Centre owes an explanation on the issue,” he told reporters [...] Read it Online - Bihar kick starts the river linking project
In an effort to put Bihar firmly on the development map, the Nitish Kumar government has embarked on an ambitious plan to interlink rivers which will go a long way in solving the perennial flood problem and also augment irrigation facilities. Ground work has already started on eight projects, of which five relate to tackling [...] Read it Online
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| World Environment Day Celebrated at Patna with action Posted: 06 Jun 2011 06:18 PM PDT PATNA: With an aim to protect the environment which is getting inhospitable day by day, various activities were organized in the city to mark World Environment Day on Sunday. The Patna circle of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) planted 15 saplings, including some medicinal ones, at the archaeological site in Kumhrar. ASI superintending archaeologist Sanjay K Manjul, other archaeologists and experts on environmental issues expressed their concern over the rising pollution of environment. Bihar State Pollution Control Board also organized a function to boost awareness about the utility of healthy environment for human beings at the Rabindra Bhawan here. The programme, themed on “Forests: Nature at your service”, was inaugurated by CM Nitish Kumar.   | | IITians guide future IITians from the state Posted: 06 Jun 2011 01:17 PM PDT PATNA: Hundreds of engineering aspirants from Bihar and Jharkhand received free expert counselling from IIT-Kharagpur students here on Sunday. A group of 24 IITians, working under the aegis of IITians for Youth (IFY), organized a daylong counselling workshop, CONSEJERIA- 2011, at the S K Science centre here. About 200 engineering aspirants who have either scored good ranking, or expect good ranking, in IIT, AIEEE and other engineering examinations attended the workshop to take expert advice. The workshop started at 10.30am and continued till evening.   | | Girls outperform boys in intermediate exams Posted: 06 Jun 2011 01:11 PM PDT PATNA: Girl students maintained their track record of registering spectacular performance even this year. They, however, stole the thunder from boys both in the Intermediate science and commerce faculties, 2011, the results of which human resource development (HRD) minister P K Shahi formally announced on Sunday on the premises of the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) that conducted the examinations. For the sake of record, Shambhavi from S N N R College, Chamtha (Begusarai), with 431 against 500 marks topped the list of first 10 ranked students in Intermediate Science. Not only that. Girl students also secured the next four ranks in the merit list of first 10 rank holders, the rest were boys. Two boys shared the sixth rank. Overall, 11 students figured in the first 10 merit list. In the Intermediate Commerce faculty, Shashi Krishna Kumar from N D J College, Andharathari (Madhubani), with 417 against 500 marks topped the merit list of first 10 ranks. Overall, 18 students figured in the first 10 merit list. As many as 10 girls figured among them. However, the race for the rank was tough in the commerce faculty, as three students shared the sixth rank, two seventh, three ninth, and four others eighth rank. While over 2.67 lakh students took the Intermediate Science examinations, 37.30 percent of them numbering 99,994 secured first division marks, followed by 51.84 per cent (or over 1.38 lakh) second division, and 1.61 percent (4,306) third division. Over 2.43 lakh students — or 90.81 percent — passed the science examinations. The percentage performance of girl students at 91.61 was better than that of boys, whose overall successful performance trailed behind them at 90.05 percentage mark. The percentage of unsuccessful science students was 7.98. Similarly, 65,619 students, inclusive of 82.03 percent of boys and 17.97 percent of girl students, took the Intermediate Commerce examinations. Overall, 34.19 percent (22,433) of students passed the examinations securing first division, followed by 36,208 (55.18 percent) students in second division, and 3,264 or 4.97 percent of them in third division. The overall success rate of students in the Intermediate Commerce faculty was 94.47 percent, including 95.53 percent for girl students and 94.24 percent for boys. The percentage of unsuccessful students in the commerce faculty was 4.82 percent. Shahi said that the government has been trying its best to provide improved academic atmosphere in the state, and has also introduced quite a few schemes to ensure that the interest of students in the pursuit of education remained sustained and the dropout cases did not occur. “Those who have not been successful could rededicate themselves to improve their performance at the next examination,” he said. BSEB chairman Rajmani Prasad Singh and its secretary, Anup Kumar Sinha, were also present on the occasion. Merit list of ISc. students 1.Shambhavi, S N N R College, Chamtha, Begusarai, Marks-431, Rank-1 2.Shubham Shandilya, M R J I College, Bisnupur, Begusarai, M-424, R-2 3.Anamika Kumari, S N N R College, Chamtha, Begusarai, M-423, R-3 4.Priti Pooja, V R College, Kiratpur, Bhagwanpur, Vaishali, M-420, R-4 5.Mamta Rai, V R College, Kiratpur, Vaishali, M-418, R-5 6.Ankur Kumar Pandey, Lok Mahavidyalaya, Hafizpur, Saran, M-416, R-6 7.Prabhakar Kumar, M R J D I College, Bisnupur, Begusarai, M-416, R-6 8.Vikash Kumar Bihari, S N V Inter College, Baniganj, Araria, M-413, R-7 9.Saurabh Kumar, G D College, Begusarai, M-412, R-8 10.Amit Kumar Gupta, Dr R B Roy College, Hajipur, Vaishali, M-411, R-9 11.Surya Prakash, M C College, Chausa, Buxar, M-410, R-10 Merit list of ICom students 1.Shashi Krishna Kumar, N D J College, Andharathari, Madhubani, M-417, R-1 2.Aman Hussain, G M College, Bettiah, West Champaran, M-414, R-2 3.Uday Kumar, Gaya College, Gaya, M-413, R-3 4.Juhi Tulsyan, Koshi College, Khagaria, M-412, R-4 5.Sanjay Kumar Jha, K S R I College, Sarairanjan, Samastipur, M-408, R-5 6.Ashish Jaiswal, M R R G College, Bettiah, West Champaran, M-406, R-6 7.Manish Kumar Mishra, D S College, Katihar, M-406, R-6 8.Timsy Jain, S M College, Bhagalpur, M-406 R-6 9.Andalib, Govt. Women`s College, Gulzarbagh, Patna, M-404, R-7 10.Nisha Jha, M L S College, Sarisopahi, Madhubani, M-404, R-7 11.Komal Gupta, S D B M Women`s College, East Champaran, M-403, R-8 12.Deepshikha, G S College, Maharajganj, Siwan, M-403, R-8 13.Rupesh Kumar, K S College, Birpur, Supaul, M-403, R-8 14.Rahul Mittal, G D College, Begusarai, M-403, R-8 15.Bhagya Rupa, S S College, Sasaram, Rohtas, M-402, R-9 16.Sonu Kumari, Gaya College, Gaya, M-402, R-9 17.Rukhsar, R D S College, Muzaffarpur, M-402, R-9 18.Madhu Poddar, M D D M College, Muzaffarpur, M-401, R-10   |
| Biharprabha News Inbox Edition |
| Good Morning,
We are here again with few interesting stories in Bihar. |
| - Nitish criticizes Center for action against Baba Ramdev
Patna, Jun 5 (PTI) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today slammed UPA government at the Centre for its use of ”brute force” to evict yoga guru Baba Ramdev and his supporters from Ramlila grounds in Delhi describing it as a ”major blow to democracy”. “The Centre owes an explanation on the issue,” he told reporters [...] Read it Online - Bihar kick starts the river linking project
In an effort to put Bihar firmly on the development map, the Nitish Kumar government has embarked on an ambitious plan to interlink rivers which will go a long way in solving the perennial flood problem and also augment irrigation facilities. Ground work has already started on eight projects, of which five relate to tackling [...] Read it Online - Planetarium to host Bihar Science Congress from June 9
PATNA: When the three-day fourth Bihar Science Congress (BSC) gets underway here next week on June 9, 267 science researchers from the state would have an opportunity to present their papers for discussion. Thereby, the participants would also have an opportunity to get an idea of life in Bihar presented in a scientific module. The [...] Read it Online - Hindu kids attending Madarsas in Bihar
Sanjay Kumar, Anjali Raj, Balakrishna Sah, Sanam Kumari are all Hindus, but who share one other thing in common: all of them have secured top ranks in Class X (Fauquania) and XII (Maulvi) examinations conducted by the Bihar Madrassa Education Board this year. Anjali secured the first rank in Fauquania in the non-Muslim category. Similarly, [...] Read it Online - Police Helplines numbers in Patna receive tremendous response
PATNA: If your complaints fail to get registered at a police station, you can lodge your complaint on the Helpline number 9470001389. Through a call or an SMS on this number, complainants can lodge their grievance with a team of police personnel headed by a DySP-rank officer, Manoj Kumar Sudhanshu. The helpline, launched by Patna [...] Read it Online
| Current Weather in Patna
Temperature: 31°C | 88°F, Current: Partly Cloudy , Wind: 22 kmph, Humidity: 75% | Have a nice day
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| Nitish criticizes Center for action against Baba Ramdev Posted: 05 Jun 2011 11:37 AM PDT Patna, Jun 5 (PTI) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today slammed UPA government at the Centre for its use of ”brute force” to evict yoga guru Baba Ramdev and his supporters from Ramlila grounds in Delhi describing it as a ”major blow to democracy”.
“The Centre owes an explanation on the issue,” he told reporters at the sidelines of a function on ”World Environment Day”
“It is a major blow to democracy and an attack on the democractic rights of the people … It is also an attack on the fundamental rights of the citizens,” he said and expressed anguish at the midnight action on “peaceful” protesters, including women and children, at Ramlila grounds.
Congress should explain as to what compelled it to act in a ”brazen manner” against the yoga guru and his supporters within hours of engaging him in dialogue over a set of demands to curb corruption, he said.
“As many as four central ministers and top officials were holding parleys with Ramdev for several days and reverentially describing him as ”Baba”. What compelled the government to change its tactics and take extreme actions against the protesters?” Kumar asked.   | | Bihar kick starts the river linking project Posted: 05 Jun 2011 05:36 AM PDT In an effort to put Bihar firmly on the development map, the Nitish Kumar government has embarked on an ambitious plan to interlink rivers which will go a long way in solving the perennial flood problem and also augment irrigation facilities.
Ground work has already started on eight projects, of which five relate to tackling of floods, two to create additional irrigation facility and the last a hydel power plant, the state water resource department”s principal secretary Afjal Amanullah told PTI.
Amanullah said that the first such project envisaging interlinking of the Burhi Gandak river with Noon, Baya and Ganga rivers would start by mid 2011-12.
The total estimated cost for the project is above Rs four billion and it will come in handy in optimally utilising its water resources, Bihar Water Resources Minister Vijay Chaudhary said.
””The pre-feasibility report for the project is ready and a Detailed Project Report is being prepared by the National Water Development Authority,”” Chaudhary said.
Another project at hand is the interlinking of the Koshi and Mechi rivers which will create additional irrigation facilities in Supaul, Saharsa, Araria, Kishanganj and Purnia.
A sum of Rs 4441.82 crore would be spent on the scheme, he said.   | | Planetarium to host Bihar Science Congress from June 9 Posted: 05 Jun 2011 05:33 AM PDT PATNA: When the three-day fourth Bihar Science Congress (BSC) gets underway here next week on June 9, 267 science researchers from the state would have an opportunity to present their papers for discussion. Thereby, the participants would also have an opportunity to get an idea of life in Bihar presented in a scientific module. The BSC, to be inaugurated by science and technology minister Gautam Singh at Indira Gandhi Planetarium, will be held under the aegis of Bihar Council of Science and Technology (BCST). It would see papers reflecting on such themes as disaster management, agriculture, health, nutrition and energy with empirical inputs from life in Bihar, over and above conventional themes related to physics, chemistry, mathematics, biology and geography. CM Nitish Kumar has already expressed interest in BSC, which was first held in 2002, followed by that held in 2007 and 2010. BSC has picked up a pattern under the regime of CM Nitish, who has instructed both the science and technology department and BCST not only to make it a regular annual feature, but also hold the meet on a definite date. “The chief minister wants BSC to develop on the pattern of Indian Science Congress, which is held on January 1 and is inaugurated by the PM,” said science and technology department director S H Mintu on Thursday, adding: “His vision is to develop BSC into a proper platform in the state for science researchers to present their research papers. Its usefulness would also help in popularizing scientific outlook and popular interest in science.” Mintu also said that no particular date has yet been fixed for holding the next meet of BSC, but it had been decided in principle to hold it in the first week of January. That way, the special expert invitees from outside the state would find it easy to participate in BSC after the Indian Science Congress is over, said another official of the department. As for the fourth meet of the BSC to be held next week, the four special invitees from outside the state include Dr Arun Pratap from M T R University, Vadodara (Gujarat), Prof. A K Bakshi from Delhi University and Dr Arjun Khandare from National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad. “During the meet, researchers will hold discussions on the scientific papers that they will present,” said Mintu, adding: “There would also be a poster exhibition to go with the theme of International Year of Chemistry.”   | | Hindu kids attending Madarsas in Bihar Posted: 05 Jun 2011 04:24 AM PDT Sanjay Kumar, Anjali Raj, Balakrishna Sah, Sanam Kumari are all Hindus, but who share one other thing in common: all of them have secured top ranks in Class X (Fauquania) and XII (Maulvi) examinations conducted by the Bihar Madrassa Education Board this year. Anjali secured the first rank in Fauquania in the non-Muslim category. Similarly, Sanjay Kumar secured the first rank in Maulvi in the non-Muslim category. “Anjali got 805 marks in the non-Muslim category, while another girl, Nasra Khatoon, got 896 marks to secure the first rank in exam in the Muslim category. Anjali’s performance is amazing,” said Bihar Madrassa Education Board’s examination controller Mohammed Mustafa. Mustafa said Sanjay got 893 marks to secure top rank in the Maulvi exam in the non-Muslim category, followed by Balakrishna who secured the second rank with 882 marks. Mohammed Malik got 963 marks to secure the first rank in the Muslim category. Maulana Ajaj Ahmad, chairman, Madrassa Education Board of Bihar, told rediff.com that Anjali and Sanjay have made a new beginning. “Their success shows the rising trend of Hindus girls and boys in madrasa education in Bihar. It is something to be encouraged and promoted,” he said. “Girls, particularly Hindu girls, have been doing better than boys in the Madrassa Board exams for the last few years,” he added. Sanjay, son of a trader from Semri-Man village of Bettiah district, is keen to pursue the Alim degree (graduation level) of the Madrassa Board. “I have made up my mind. I will encourage other Hindu students to opt for madrasa education, for it is inexpensive and enriching,” Sanjay said. Similarly, Sanam Kumari, a Dalit girl from Bhanachak Darbari Bhagat Tola, which falls under the Manjhauli police station in West Champaran district, who secured the third rank in the Maulvi exam, said she wanted to be an Urdu teacher. Madrasa Board officials said that non-Muslims, particularly upper caste Brahmins, in Mithilanchal region in north Bihar comprising Darbhanga, Madhubani and Sitamarhi districts, are keen on sending their children to madrasas to learn Arabic and Persian, Islamic traditions and other modern subjects, with an eye on jobs in the Gulf and in embassies of Muslim nations. The trend began about a decade ago. The madrasas charge a low fee for Class X and XII level examinations, which is proving to be an attractive proposition to Hindus in rural Bihar. Though the central government began the process of modernising madrasas in 1994, the Bihar government only introduced it in early 2002. Under the modernisation scheme, the course was revised to keep it in tune with the curriculum prescribed by the Bihar School Examination Board and the Central Board of Secondary Education. “Now we teach all the modern subjects, including physics, chemistry, mathematics, and social sciences,” Ahmad said. “After a few Hindu students passed out from the seminaries, they propagated our humane approach. In fact, we are not teaching anything against any religion or anything anti-national as claimed by some,” he added. Ahmad said that hundreds of Hindu children are studying in madrasas in Bihar, and that the madrasa seminaries attract both the elite and the downtrodden among the Hindus. The madrasas provide education free of cost, which is especially attractive to the poorest and marginalised sections of the society. Bihar has over 4,000 madrasas, including over 1,118 state-run Islamic schools. There are 2,459 unaided madrasas and hundreds more operating in many regions. According to the first-ever status paper brought out by the BSMEB, there are only 32 madrasas for girls under the government-aided category and 576 in the unaided category. http://www.rediff.com/news/report/why-many-hindu-students-study-in-bihars-madrasas/20110603.htm   | | Police Helplines numbers in Patna receive tremendous response Posted: 05 Jun 2011 03:38 AM PDT PATNA: If your complaints fail to get registered at a police station, you can lodge your complaint on the Helpline number 9470001389. Through a call or an SMS on this number, complainants can lodge their grievance with a team of police personnel headed by a DySP-rank officer, Manoj Kumar Sudhanshu. The helpline, launched by Patna SSP Alok Kumar on March 1, has received tremendous response till date. In the last three months, 153 complaints were received, most of which have been solved, the SSP claimed here on Friday before mediapersons. The women police Helpline (number 9470001390), which was also launched by the Patna SSP on March 1, has performed equally well as indicated by the number of cases solved. As many as 300 out of 378 cases, involving complaints of harassment of women, were solved in the last three months. Complaints were received not only from Patna but also neighbouring towns of Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga and Begusarai. Besides, some complaints were received from Jharkhand, Delhi and Haryana also received. A few came from as far off as Dubai. Women Helpline handles cases of harassment through phone and eve-teasing. Counselling is also done on domestic issues arising between couples. As many as 170 cases out of total 280 complaints related to domestic issues have been solved so far. In view of the success of these two helplines, SSP Alok Kumar felicitated members of these cells, including DySP Smita Suman and DySP Sudhanshu.   |
| Biharprabha News Inbox Edition |
| Good Morning,
We are here again with few interesting stories in Bihar. |
| - Gyanesh Pandey- Lighting up lives in Bihar
Growing up in a remote village in West Champaran district of Bihar where dusk meant groping in darkness, Gyanesh Pandey wanted to bring light to the lives of the people. "The people of the village didn't have any choice and there was no rural development," says the 34-year-old US-returned Gyanesh. Though his education took him [...] Read it Online - Power tarrifs to witness a steep hike in Bihar
Patna, June 1 (IANS) The Bihar Electricity Regulatory Commission (BERC) has approved the proposed hike in power tariff in the state, officials Wednesday said. “The commission has reportedly approved to hike the power tariff by 15 to 20 per cent in the state, ” officials in the Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) said. Contrary to [...] Read it Online - Biharis getting crazy of foreign degrees
PATNA: Going abroad for higher studies is a trend fast catching up in the state. Studying in a foreign country may lighten one’s purse by anything above Rs 10 lakh per annum, however it’s not a deterrent for those aspiring to go beyond seven seas. For, they get a helping hand from banks, which in [...] Read it Online - India pressurizing Nepal to shift the course of Kosi
KATHMANDU, June 1: India is putting pressure on Nepal to change the course of the Koshi River, which has shifted toward east after breaching the embankment over two years ago, by constructing a pilot channel that may sweep away a Nepali village development committee (VDC). India had unilaterally started construction of the pilot channel around [...] Read it Online - UK Magazine 'Alliance' features Bihar in a special issue
PATNA: Alliance, UK’s leading magazine for philanthropy and social investment worldwide, has done a special feature on Bihar in its June 2011 issue.The feature focuses on the alternative energy sector in Bihar, explores the role of key implementers and discusses how they could work better with the philanthropic sector.Guest editor Simon Desjardins in his article, [...] Read it Online
| Current Weather in Patna
Temperature: 28°C | 82°F, Current: Partly Cloudy , Wind: 4 kmph, Humidity: 74% | Have a nice day
The Biharprabha News Team | | | If you are unable to view this mail properly, click here | |
| Gyanesh Pandey- Lighting up lives in Bihar Posted: 04 Jun 2011 06:19 PM PDT Growing up in a remote village in West Champaran district of Bihar where dusk meant groping in darkness, Gyanesh Pandey wanted to bring light to the lives of the people. "The people of the village didn't have any choice and there was no rural development," says the 34-year-old US-returned Gyanesh. Though his education took him to places far away from the dim rural hinterland, this Electrical Engineer from IT BHU (Institute of Technology Banaras Hindu University) returned after doing his higher studies at the prestigious Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, and working in Los Angeles in the Semi Conductor Industry.
It was on a visit to his village, he, with his friend Ratnesh Yadav, felt the need to electrify the village, where the power lines of the state run Electricity Board do not reach. "We ruled out solar and wind energy as it would prove very costly," says Gyanesh, who was doing research in organic solar cells in the US. However, they soon hit upon the idea to establish small scale power systems by burning renewable farm waste. The villages had plenty of rice husk – a waste product of rice milling – that could be used as fuel in the micro power plants. The clean technology of biomass gasification was used to generate gas to run generators that supplied electricity. In 2007 the first power plant was set up in a village called Tamkuha in Bihar through a NGO they set up for the purpose, Samta Samriddhi Foundation. A year later they established a separate company to run their power plants, Husk Power Systems (HPS). The company presently has 80 power plants, each generating 35-100 Kilowatts of electricity, lighting 350 villages in the districts of West Champaran, East Champaran, Lakhisarai and Muzaffarpur in Bihar. Powerhouse: Gyanesh Pandey's company has 80 power plants supplying electricity to about 350 villages in Bihar
"We have been training the local youths for running and managing the plants thus providing rural employment," says Gyanesh, adding that Bihar has to improve its antiquated police and administrative set up that is least sympathetic to development. Gyanesh has brought electricity at very low cost to villages in a state where majority of the villages are still under darkness. It is a 'pay-for-use' service where each house or business is directly connected to HPS power station. "We charge about Rs 100 per month, which is the basic charge for lighting a house, and as per their requirement the charge increases," says Gyanesh. As per the requirement electricity could be supplied for 6 hours to 14 hours in a day. According to Gyanesh, the break even period for a power plant is roughly about 4-5 years. Their income comes through sale of electricity, rice husk char (RHR) – a by-product of rice husk used in making of incense sticks etc, and door-to-door selling of general consumer goods at village homes. His company has won many awards in a short span of time, the first being the 2008 University of Virginia Business Plan Competition where they came first and the Social Innovation Competition at the University of Texas, Austin. More awards and recognition followed. Gyanesh says they would trade for carbon credits from next year. "We are saving 100-150 tonne of carbon dioxide per year per power plant," he explains. As 1 carbon credit earns 10-12Euros, they would be earning from carbon credits. Each carbon credit represents one tonne of carbon dioxide either removed from the atmosphere or saved from being emitted. By 2014 HPS proposes to set up 2014 power plants and save 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. "We are planning to have 500 power plants in Bihar and the rest outside the state," says Gyanesh.   | | Power tarrifs to witness a steep hike in Bihar Posted: 04 Jun 2011 08:11 AM PDT Patna, June 1 (IANS) The Bihar Electricity Regulatory Commission (BERC) has approved the proposed hike in power tariff in the state, officials Wednesday said. “The commission has reportedly approved to hike the power tariff by 15 to 20 per cent in the state, ” officials in the Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) said. Contrary to the BSEB proposal for massive hike of power tariff, the BERC has approved a small increase which will be effective from this month itself, they said. The BSEB had submitted its proposals for a revised tariff to the BERC last February. According to sources, the BSEB incurs a loss of Rs.1,417.23 crore annually. Of the Rs.10,000 crore it has to recover from consumers, an amount of Rs.7,000 crore is owed by government departments. With the mercury soaring and scarcity of drinking water reported from across the state, outages in electricity supply have added to people’s difficulties. In the last one month alone, people in over a dozen towns in Bihar have held angry demonstrations against power woes. While Bihar has a daily requirement of 2,200-2,500 MW, it generates hardly 45-50 MW of power. The central government supplies around 850 to 1050 MW and the state is facing a power deficit of about 1,000-1,200 MW a day, officials said.   | | Biharis getting crazy of foreign degrees Posted: 04 Jun 2011 06:04 AM PDT PATNA: Going abroad for higher studies is a trend fast catching up in the state. Studying in a foreign country may lighten one’s purse by anything above Rs 10 lakh per annum, however it’s not a deterrent for those aspiring to go beyond seven seas. For, they get a helping hand from banks, which in recent years have eased up the process of giving education loans. “Barely a few years back, two or three students used to turn up for education loans to study abroad. The number swelled to 15 this year, twice than last year,” said Rajiv Ranjan, assistant general manager, Punjab National Bank (PNB). SBI was approached by 61 students this year, against around 50 last year. Courses like MBA and PG diploma in various branches of management, engineering and medicine offering great career opportunities are the most preferred choices among students in the city. “The US and UK are the hottest destinations for career-oriented students,” said Prabhat Kumar, assistant general manager, SBI. Pushpak Kumar, a passout of Delhi Public School, Patna, who is going to City University, London for MBA said, “I chose UK as MBA is a one-year course there. This would not only be a time saver but also give me an edge over others.” Australia and Germany are the popular destinations among those interested in medicine. According to PNB’s Ranjan, five students out of 15 who approached the bank for loan, have opted for medical studies. Sanjeev Kumar, who is going to do software engineering course from University of East London, said, ” Foreign degrees are still confined to the kith and kin of ‘nawabs (haves)’, as banks offer loans on the basis of family income or collateral matching the amount of loan.” Banks like SBI, PNB, and HDFC Bank ask for either a third party guarantee or collateral for loans above Rs 4 lakh. And if the loan amount is above Rs 7.50 lakh, tangible collateral security (residential property, fixed deposit, LIC/NSC/KVP) matching the amount of loan is mandatory. “There is special scheme for low income group with annual income below Rs 4.5 lakh,” said Prabhat of SBI, adding, “wherein government pays the interest during the study period.” PNB offers 1% rebate in interest if it is paid by the parents during the study period. “The maximum period a student gets for repayment of loan is seven years,” Pushkar Gupta, corporate communications, HDFC Bank, Mumbai, told TOI. This tenure is same for most of the banks. The education loans for overseas universities cover the fees payable to college/university, tuition fees, hostel fee, examination fee, library fee, purchase of books/equipment, any security deposit and the purchase of computer. Banks also pay for travel expenses. The rate of interest charged by banks per annum varies. SBI charges 13% interest per annum for loans up to Rs 4 lakh, 14.5% for loans between Rs 4 lakh and Rs. 7.50 lakh and 13.5% for loans above Rs 7.50 lakh. While PNB uniformly charges 13.25% on all loans, irrespective of their size, HDFC Bank’s interest varies between 11.5% and 14% per annum. Some banks also offer half-a-per cent lower rates to girls. Most of the banks, including SBI and HDFC Bank, provide loans up to a maximum of Rs 20 lakh. However, PNB has no ceiling for education loans.   | | India pressurizing Nepal to shift the course of Kosi Posted: 04 Jun 2011 04:01 AM PDT KATHMANDU, June 1: India is putting pressure on Nepal to change the course of the Koshi River, which has shifted toward east after breaching the embankment over two years ago, by constructing a pilot channel that may sweep away a Nepali village development committee (VDC). India had unilaterally started construction of the pilot channel around two months ago and work was halted after the Saptari District Administration Office issued a directive around seven weeks ago to immediately halt the construction following protests by locals. A senior officer at the Department of Irrigation (DOI), which monitors the Koshi barrage from the Nepali side, confirmed that the department did not give the pilot channel a go ahead as Gobargada, an island VDC of Saptari with a population of around 1,500 to the south of the barrage, will be swept away if Koshi were brought to the central course. "They did not consult us, as required by the agreement, before starting the pilot channel. The irrigation department of Bihar contacted us several times after the work was halted. We asked them to use the diplomatic channel in the matter around a month ago," the officer said. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has himself started to lobby the Indian central government to take up the issue of constructing the pilot channel with the Nepal government. "The center should immediately take up with Nepal the issue of strengthening and protecting the embankment in the wake of forceful stoppage of work in Nepal and digging of a pilot channel to re-establish the central flow of the river to avoid undue pressure on both the western and the eastern embankments," the Press Trust of India (PTI) had quoted Kumar as saying on Friday. If the digging of the channel is not resumed, he would meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and urge them to take up the issue with Nepal, the PTI report added. A local journalist in Saptari said Kumar had even visited the site on Saturday and urged Nepali journalists to stop writing negatively about the pilot channel. The DOI officer said bringing Koshi to the central course may be even more dangerous for Nepal as Koshi may take the western course and threaten the Hanumannagar area to the south of the barrage if the work were not to go exactly according to plan. There is no Nepali land to the south of the barrage on the eastern side and the river has already been under control on the north side of the barrage. Current status of Koshi The DOI officer said there was not any real threat on the Nepali side this year. "There is little threat on the western side as the river has taken eastern course and things are better than 2008 (August) when the embankment was breached even on the eastern side," the officer added. The Indian government became serious about Koshi after the breach, the officer claimed, and the Koshi High Level Technical Committee — that includes the Deputy Director General of DOI and Chairman of the Ganga Flood Control Commission from the Indian side — has been formed. "The high-level committee meets every November to decide the course of action for the coming monsoon and India carries out the maintenance work with Nepali approval as per the agreement," the officer explained. The whole maintenance work is done by India, the officer contended, with India authorized to work up to 32 km north of the barrage on Nepal´s consent as per the agreement. The spurs are being repaired, porcupines (barriers that reduce velocity of water flow and stop sand) are being placed at different places for the past two years and dredging machines are being used to weaken the obstructions created by silt at banks. The officer attributed the 2008 breach to such obstructions claiming that the water flow was just 178,000 cusec at the time of breach. "The water level crosses 300,000 cusec on several occasions every year," the officer revealed. The barrage was constructed to withstand pressure of 800,000 cusec when it was completed in early 1960s. "But if the water flow were to reach 800,000 cusec, water would overflow from both eastern and western sides of the barrage as the capacity of barrage has been drastically reduced by massive sedimentation," the officer claimed. "I am told the level had reached 800,000 cusec just a couple of years after completion of the project but it has not crossed 400,000 cusec after that so we can´t exactly forecast the threshold," the officer added.   | | UK Magazine ‘Alliance’ features Bihar in a special issue Posted: 03 Jun 2011 09:59 PM PDT PATNA: Alliance, UK’s leading magazine for philanthropy and social investment worldwide, has done a special feature on Bihar in its June 2011 issue.The feature focuses on the alternative energy sector in Bihar, explores the role of key implementers and discusses how they could work better with the philanthropic sector.Guest editor Simon Desjardins in his article, ‘Why does Bihar matter?’, says there are three main reasons why the state has been chosen as a focus for the special feature. First, for those readers interested in energy provision and the services that could be delivered as a result of rural electricity provision, this state is a hotbed of innovation. Indeed, some of the world’s most ground-breaking rural electrification businesses are scaling up in the state. “We need to learn from them.”Second, energy in Bihar may seem like a narrow focus, irrelevant to a development organization or investor working in education in Africa, for example. The opposite is true. In many ways, Bihar is a proxy for the rest of India, and a unique test bed for technology and service innovation that could be applied throughout the world.Third, because access to products and services is so limited in Bihar, the opportunity to make a significant difference is heightened. Bihar’s 90 million or so inhabitants almost universally lack access to reliable energy, education and health care services, he says in his six-page write-up.The magazine has also profiled a company that uses rice husks and other biomass waste to generate electricity for remote villages. In an interview, Husk Power Systems’ co-founder and CEO Gyanesh Pandey describes the genesis of the idea and his hopes for the future. Also, investors talk about why they provided finance for the project.Simon and Alliance editor Caroline Hartnell paid a weeklong visit to Bihar in March. In her editorial, Caroline says, “The experience of driving through the countryside as it gets dark is fresh in my memory… as dusk approaches, and then night, complete darkness falls across the landscape, the little villages lost from sight.”She further writes, “The desire to bring light and energy to the estimated 75% of the 90 million inhabitants of Bihar who have no access, or extremely limited access, to electricity is the driving force behind entrepreneurs like Gyanesh Pandey of Husk Power Systems and Anish Thakkar of Greenlight Planet, with whom I spent several days, visiting the villages where they are working and talking to the people who are benefiting.”Anish Thakkar of Greenlight Planet talks about his ambition to see kerosene lamps replaced by solar lights throughout India, their system for distributing lamps via village-level direct sellers and their plans for expansion.   |
| Biharprabha News Inbox Edition |
| Good Morning,
We are here again with few interesting stories in Bihar. |
| - Over 427 new Silos in Bihar soon
Patna, Jun 1 (PTI) The Bihar government would set up 427 silos for which it has signed a MoU with Nabard for a Rs 276 crore loan, to increase storage capacity of foodgrains. Stating that the 500 tonnes silos would be constructed at all blocks, state Food and Consumer Protection Minister Shyam Rajak told newsmen [...] Read it Online - Bihar demands independent body for BPL survey
Patna, June 01 (ANI): Bihar’s Planning Commission on Tuesday demanded for the establishment of an independent National Poverty Commission for Below Poverty Line survey. Secretary of the Bihar’s Planning Commission Vijay Prakash said, for the better formulation of the policies, there is a need of an independent body that can keep a constant check on [...] Read it Online - Bihar committed to focus on quality water supply
Patna, May 31: Public health engineering department (PHED) minister Chandra Mohan Rai said the state government was committed to provide quality and potable water to the people. Addressing a news meet at his office today, Rai said: "In the past few years, there has been a continuous tapping of groundwater resulting in the depletion of [...] Read it Online - AC buses to ply Patna roads by next week
PATNA: Bihar State Road Transport Corporation (BSRTC) will run eight new 32-seater air-conditioned city buses by next week for commuters. Four AC buses each would ply on two routes -- route number one from Gandhi Maidan to Khagaul and route number two from Gandhi Maidan to Danapur. These AC buses will operate from 5am to [...] Read it Online - Misuse of residential plots by doctors in Patna
Patna, May 31: A few doctors are allegedly running multi-storeyed nursing homes in the plots allotted to them by Bihar State Housing Board for residential purpose. Taking note of this, the housing board has recently served notices to many of the occupants. According to departmental sources, around 110 plots sprawling over more than 300 cottahs [...] Read it Online
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