Prez 'at home': Space crunch has guests in a huddle

I wonder : It has become a reoccurring problem, last time on 26th Jan, The President house failed to cater for the seating arrangement of the Armed Forces Chiefs as it just managed to run short by three chairs. Jai Ho.


NEW DELHI: While President Pratibha Patil may have a reason to be happy that Delhi finally got some rain, a day after she spoke of the looming drought situation, the ‘at home’ in Rashtrapati Bhavan to celebrate the 63rd Independence Day was a washout. It had to be shifted indoors from the usually wellkept expanses of the Mughal Gardens.

The tea party lost much of its charm as the guests had to be huddled into the various halls on the first floor of Rashtrapati Bhavan with hardly any place for the invitees to mix around.

While the President herself walked through the corridors leading to Ashoka Hall and remained seated for 45 minutes as she met her guests, flanked by PM Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi , there was a certain stiffness about the 'at home'. The jostling at the tables where the tea and snacks were laid out was also unusual because of the lack of space.

Soldiers SMS Corner

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Summary of last poll on blog..

Dear Readers,

1. The poll question was " Have 6th pay commission scales downgraded Armed Forces"

2. The compilation of summary is here for all to read:

a) total votes : 63

b) No. of "ayes" : 61 (97%)

c) No. of "No's" : 02 ( 03%)

d) No. of " Can't say" : 00 ( 0%)

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UPDATE : 60% ARREARS

6CPC 60% Arrears - Clarification

Govt of India, Min of Finance, Deptt of Expenditure O.M. No. F.No. 1/1/2008-IC, dated 16-3-2009

Exractt of the above O.M is reproduced below..............Extract of the above O.M is reproduced

Vide this department's O.M. of even number, dated 30 Aug 2008 on the subject of implementation of SPC recommendations, instructions were issued, inter alia regarding payment of 40% arrears during the year 2008-09. The last sentence of Para 2(v) of the said O.M. clearly stated the following :-
"Orders in regard to second instalment of arrears will be issued separately."

This Department has been receiving references from some ministries / departments seeking clarification as to whether the remaining 60% of arrears can be paid in the next Financial Year 2009-10 without separate orders of this Department. In this connection it is clarified that the second instalment of arrears should only be paid after specific orders in this regard are issued by Dept of Expenditure.

SOURCE : https://www.cdaopune.org/spc_arrs.asp

MHA : GALLANTRY AWARD WINNERS LIST

The following are the list of awardees of gallantry medals on the occasion of Independence Day 2009.

President's police medal for gallantry

Maharashtra

1. Late Shriniwas Yellayya Dandikwar constable (posthumously), BSF

CISF

2. K C Yadav, Assistant Commandant
3. Ashim Manta, Constable
4. Late Bhagirath Singh, Head Constable (Posthumously)
5. Late Amarendra Sarmah, head constable (Posthumously)
6. Late Sarbjeet Singh, constable /general duty (posthumously)
7. Late Vipin Kumar Singh, constable/ general duty (posthumously)
8. Dharam Singh, constable/general duty
9. Salim Khan, constable/ general duty

Railway Protection Force

10. Late Murlidhar Laxman Chaudhari, head constable (posthumously)
Indo Tibetan Border Police Force
11. Anil Kumar T, constable

POLICE MEDAL FOR GALLANTRY

Anhdra Pradesh

1. M. Ravindranath Babu, additional superintendent of police
2. Srirangam Ravindranath, reserve sub inspector
3. Isarapu Sanyasi Rao, sub inspector
4. M. Venkateswarulu, police constable
5. S V Rajashekar Babu, additional superintendent of police
6. Srikantam Jagannatha Rao, sub inspector
7. Hathagale Dasharath, head constable
8. Lanke Bhaskar Rao, police constable
9. M. Ganesh Raju, police constable

Assam

10. Nabneet Mahanta, Sub Divisional Police Officer
11. Utpal Borah UBSI
12. Pushpadhar Payeng ABC

Assam
13. Gonesh Gogoi, ABC
14. Lalit Payeng, ABC

Bihar

15. Vineet Vinayak, superintendent of police
16. Birendra Kumar Singh, sub inspector
17. Raj Kumar, sub inspector
18. Surendra Kumar Singh, senior commando
19. Manoj Kumar, junior commando
20. Narendra Kumar Jha, junior commando
21. Sunil Kumar Singh, junior commando

Gujarat

22. Vijaykumar Karshanbhai Gadhvi, police sub inspector

Jammu & Kashmir

23. Abdul Qayoom, additional superintendent of police
24. Shiv Krishan, sub inspector
25. Nazir Ahmad, inspector
26. Raj Pal Singh, sub inspector
27. Sajjad Ahmad Shah, deputy superintendent of police
28. Mushtaq Ahmed, inspector
29. R P Singh, sub inspector
30. Jan Mohammad, constable
31. Tanveer Ahmad, sub inspector
32. Gh. Jeelani Wani, deputy superintendent of Police
33. Shahzad Ahmad Salaria, deputy superintendent of police
34. Sheraz Ahmad Khan, constable
35. Mohd. Yousuf, police sub inspector
36. Sheikh Junaid Mehmood, additional superintendent of police
37. Param Vir Singh, deputy superintendent of police
38. Mohd. Shafiq, inspector
39. Rakesh Akram, inspector
40. Manzoor Ahmad, sub inspector

Jharkhand

41. Amarnath, sub inspector
42. Girish Pandey, inspector
43. Basisth Narayan Singh, sub inspector
44. Pran Ranjan Kumar, sub inspector

Madhya Pradesh

45. Chanchal Shekhar, superintendent of police
46. Virendra Singh, Additional superintendent of police
47. B.S. Parihar, Inspector
48. B.P.S. Parihar, Inspector
49. Ajay Kaithwas, inspector
50. Smt. Anuradha Shankar, deputy inspector general
51. Anant Kumar Singh, superintendent of police
52. Dr. Girija Kishore Pathak, Additional superintendent of Police
53. Rajesh Singh Bhadoriya sub divisional officer police
54. Jaideep Prasad, superintendent of police
55. Rameshwar Singh Yadav, sub divisional police officer

Maharashtra

56. Balasaheb Hanumant Deshmukh, sub inspector

Manipur

57. Y. Oken Meetei, sub inspector (1st bar to PMG)
58. L Gogo Meetei, head constable (1st bar to PMG)
59. L. Rameshwor Singh, Havildar
60. Md. Firoj Khan, rifleman
61. Th. Premchandra Singh, Rifleman
62. A. Arunkumar Singh, rifleman
63. B. Lunthang Vaiphei, sub inspector (1st bar to PMG)
64. Samuel Kamei, Rifleman
65. L. Ratan Kumar, Constable
66. Md. Islamuddin, rifleman
67. P. Achouba Meetei, Sub-inspector
68. Khonaijam Ringo Singh, Rifleman
69. Lisham Ratan Singh, constable

Manipur

70. K. Jayanta Singh, Superintendent of Police
71. M. Sudhirkumar Meitei, Inspector
72. P. Sanjoy Singh, Sub inspector
73. L. Noren Singh, Rifleman
74. Md. Hasan Ali, Rrifleman
75. M. James Thangal, Sub inspector
76. M. Prem Kumar Singh, head constable
77. D. Khamba Maring, constable
78. M. Sudhirkumar Meitei, sub inspector (1st bar to PMG)
79. P. Sanjoy Singh, Sub inspector
80. A. Indrakumar Singh, Constable
81. N. Romen Singh, Rifleman
82. Laitonjam Bebekananda Singh, Havildar
83. Takhellambam Anou Singh, Constable
84. Maibam Imo Singh, constable
85. Ksh. Manihar Singh, Inspector
86. P. Achouba Meetei, sub inspector
87. S. Ramesh Singh, constable
88. Md. Abdur Rahaman, constable
89. Md. Sanayaima, constable
90. N. Tikendra Meetei, sub inspector (1st bar to pmg)
91. A. Nando Singh, Jemadar
92. A. Gopendro Singh, Rifleman
93. D. Mekham Maring, rifleman
94. Pebam John Singh, inspector
95. Md. Riyajuddin Shah, sub inspector
96. Thokchom Manishana Singh, constable
97. Md. Kalamuddin, rifleman
98. P. Achouba Meetei, sub inspector
99. Kh. Ringo Singh, Rifleman
100. Md. Sanayaima, constable
101. Jacob Kaping, constable
102. L. Thangminlen Khongsai, Havildar
103. N. Kunjeshwor Singh, constable
104. Y. Ningthem Meitei, rifleman
105. O. Suranjoy Singh, rifleman
106. M. Shyamsundar Singh, rifleman
107. R.K.Manjit Singh, rifleman
108. Th. Krishnatombi singh (5th bar to pmg) inspector
109. L. Lenin Singh, constable
110. Ch. Birendra Aimol, constable
111. Clay Khongsai, superintendent of police
112. Y. Kishorchand Meitei, inspector
113. N. Tikendra Meetei, sub inspector
114. A. Nando Singh, Jemadar
115. Ksh. Inaoton Singh, havildar
116. Ph. Arun Kumar Singh, havildar (1st bar to pmg)
117. S. Suresh Singh, rifleman
118. T. Paul Maring, Rifleman
119. Md. Doulat Khan, rifleman
120. H. Nungshithoi Singh, rifleman
121. Y. James Meitei, rifleman
122. N. Seilesh Singh, Rifleman
123. E. Romen Kumar Singh, Rifleman
124. L. Dhanabir Singh (1st bar to pmg), assistant sub inspector
125. T. Haridas Singh (1st bar to pmg), Rifleman
126. N. Jameson Singh, Rifleman
127. Kshetrimayum Manihar Singh, inspector
128. Yengkhom Shakti Shen Singh, Jemadar
129. Waikhom Amarjit Singh, Rifleman
130. Md. Abu Talib, Rifleman

Meghalaya

131. Smt. C.A. Lyngwa, senior superintendent of police (1st bar to pmg)
132. I.S.Marak, sub inspector (1st bar to pmg)
133. K. Thapa, sub inspector (1st bar to pmg)
134. D. Khatri, Sub Inspector
135. B.B.Gurung, Constable (1st bar to pmg)
136. S. Sharma, constable
137. C. Marak, Constable
138. J. Marbaniang, Constable, NCT of Delhi
139. Desh Raj, Head Constable
140. Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, assistant commissioner of police (3rd bar to pmg)
141. Chandrika Prashad, sub inspector
142. Dev Dutt, head constable
143. Gagan Bhaskar, sub inspector
144. Har Gobinder Singh Dhaliwal, deputy commissioner of police
145. Bhisham Singh, assistant commissioner of police
146. Vijay Singh, inspector
147. Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, assistant commissioner of police (4th bar to pmg)
148. Dharmender Kumar, sub inspector
149. Balwant Singh, head constable
150. Rajbir Singh, head constable
151. Gagan Bhaskar, sub inspector (1st bar to pmg)
152. Gite Shridhar Mahipati, constable
153. Man Singh, Constable, Tripura
154. Sahit Debbarma Naik
155. Babul Choudhury, rifleman
156. Bhakta Bindu Jamatia, naib subedar

Uttar Pradesh

157. Amitabh Yash, senior superintendent of police (2nd bar to pmg)
158. Anant Deo (2nd bar to PMG), additional superintendent of police
159. Hrishikesh Yadav, inspector
160. Anil Kumar Singh, inspector
161. Vimal Kumar Singh, sub inspector
162. Yatindra Sharma, sub inspector
163. Omvir Singh Chauhan, head constable
164. Shivendra Singh Sengar, head constable
165. Rakesh Kumar Singh, constable
166. Rajeev Krishna, senior superintendent of police (1st bar to PMG)
167. Rakesh Kumar Pandey, deputy superintendent of police

Assam Rifles

168. Late. Krishna Kumar Tirkey (Posthumously), rifleman
169. Late Pagar Pandharinath Bhaskar (posthumously), rifleman
170. Chandra Mohan R, Havildar

Border Security Force

171. V L K Vaiphei, assistant commandant
172. Santanu Boruah, constable
173. Ashim Dutta, constable
174. Anand Kumar, assistant commandant
175. Basudev Parasar, constable
176. T. Vinu, constable
177. Arjun Singh, head constable
178. Rajesh Kumar, constable
179. Rathod Pandit, constable

Central Industrial Security Force


180. Santosh Kumar, constable/general duty
181. Devendra Prasad, constable/general duty
182. Late. Subas Chandra Pradhan, sub inspector/executive (posthumously)
183. Late. Potupureddi Appanna, constable/ general duty (posthumously)
184. Late Barun Paramanik, constable/ general duty (posthumously)
185. Late Solanki Kritan Kumar, constable/general duty (posthumously)
186. Late Bidhan Maji, constable/ general duty (posthumously)
187. Late Lalit Kumar, constable/ general duty (posthumously)
188. Kuber Chandra Rout, constable/general duty
189. Chetan Das, constable/general duty
190. Ram Bilash Singh, constable/ general duty
191. Harender Prasad, constable/ general duty
192. Champak Kalita, constable/ general duty
193. S. K. Mohiuddin, constable / general duty
194. Narender Kumar Yadav, constable/ general duty
195. Mihir Parmanik, constable/ general duty
196. S.N.Singh, Assistant commandant
197. Ajay Kumar, constable
198. Santosh Kumar, Constable
199. Gulab Singh, constable
200. Balram, Constable
201. Praveen Verma, assistant commandant
202. Sricharan Swain, head constable
203. Randhir Jaiswal, constable
204. Late Kunjumon C., head constable/ driver (posthumously)
205. Shiva Kumar K. head constable
206. Dinesh Pratap Upadhyay, commandant (1st bar to PMG)
207. Ashok Kumar Deputy Commandant
208. Pinku Bordoloi, Constable
209. Dattatrey Pote, constable
210. Birdnder Sharma, Constable
211. Robort Lal Thinghlima, Constable
212. Mohd iseel Khan, Constable




68 police officials get President's Police Medal for distinguished service



As many as 68 police officials have got President's Police Medal for distinguished service. They are :

Andhra Pradesh

1. M. Punna Rao, Inspector General Of Police, CID, Hyderabad,
2. K. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Additional Superintendent of Police, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh

Bihar

3. Ramesh Kumar Tripathi, Sergeant Major, Saran District, Bihar
4. Arun Kumar Singh, Sergeant Major, Police Lines, Bhojpur, Ara District, Bihar

Chhattisgarh

5. Ravi Pratap Singh, Assistant Commandant, 7th Bn, CAF, Bhilai, Chhattisgarh
N.C.T. Of Delhi
6. Sachidanand Shrivastav, Joint Commissioner Of Police , Police Headquarters, Delhi
7. Shankarsan Dash, Deputy Commissioner Of Police, New Delhi District, Delhi

Goa

8. Vinay Veerendra Chaudhary, Senior Superintendent Of Police, Goa

b9. Prakash Purshottam Pradhan, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, Porbandar District, Gujarat

Haryana

10. Paramvir Rathee, Director General Of Police (CID), Chandigarh, Haryana
11. Ram Singh Bishnoi, Superintendent Of Police, Mewat, Haryana

Himachal Pradesh

12. Jog Raj Thakur, Deputy Inspector General Of Police, Traffic, Tourist & Railways, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh

Jammu And Kashmir

13. Javaid Riyaz, Assistant Inspector General (Personnel), Police
Headquarters, Srinagar, Jammu And Kashmir

Karnataka

14. G.M. Hayath , Inspector General Of Police, Ksrtc, Bangalore,
Karnataka
15. H C Kishore Chandra, Inspector General Of Police, Economic
Of fences, Bangalore, Karnataka

Kerala

16. P Chandrasekharan, Inspector General Of Police,
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

Madhya Pradesh
17. M R Krishna, Inspector General Of Police, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh
18. Keshav Chander Verma, Inspector General Of Police, SAF Range,
Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh
19. Bharat Bhooshan Singh Thakur, Inspector General Of Police, Bhopal,
Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra

20. S P S Yadav, Additional Director General Of Police, CIDCrime, M S
Pune, Maharashtra
21. Chandrakant Shalu Janrao, Commandant, SRPF Gr VI Dhule,
Maharashtra
22. Yashwant Ramchandra Tawade, Assistant Commissioner Of Police,
Ghatkopar Division, Mumbai, Maharashtra

Manipur

23. K.H Chandramani Singh, Commandant, 7th Bn. Manipur Rifles, Khabeisoi, Manipur

Mizoram

24. Dinesh Kumar Bhatt, Deputy Inspector General (CID), Aizawl,Mizoram

Orissa

25. Ajaya Kumar Parida, Superintendent Of Police, Special Branch,
Cuttack, Orissa

Punjab

26. Brahm Paul, Superintendent Of Police, Chandigarh, Punjab
27. Jagtar Singh, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, Punjab Police
Academy, Phillaur, Punjab

Rajasthan

28. Krishan Kumar Sharma, Additional Director General Of Police,
Vigilance, Jaipur, Rajasthan
29. Bhagwati Nath Yogeshwar, Inspector General Of Police, Security,
Jaipur, Rajasthan

Tamil Nadu

30. T Rajendran, Additional Director General Of Police, Law And Order,
Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Tripura

31. Amitabha Kar, Inspector General Of Police, Agartala, Tripura

Uttar Pradesh

32. Ambrish Chandra Sharma, Additional Director General Of Police, Dr.
B.R.A. UP Police Academy, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
33. Vipan Kumar, Inspector General Of Police, ACO, Lucknow, Uttar
Pradesh
34. Bhola Nath Singh, Commandant, 15th Bn. PAC, Agra, Uttar Pradesh

Uttrakhand

35. Devi Prasad Juyal, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, Nainital,
Uttrakhand

West Bengal

36. Sivaji Ghosh, Additional Commissioner Of Police(Iii), Kolkata, West
Bengal
37. Devinderpal Singh, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, P.S-Barasat,
North 24 Parganas Distt, West Bengal

Chandigarh

38. Vijay Kumar, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, PCR, Chandigarh
Border Security Force
39. Nand Kishore, Inspector General, Darjeeling, BSF
40. Ajit Mohan Bhatnagar, Deputy Inspector General, BSF Rajouri,
J&K, BSF
41. Kamal Singh Chauhan, Deputy Inspector General, Shillong, BSF
42. Shailender Singh Tomar, Deputy Inspector General, Kolkata, BSF
43. Dinesh Kumar Pandey, Deputy Inspector General, Kolkota, BSF
Central Bureau Of Investigation
44. Om Prakash Galhotra, Joint Director, Hqr Delhi, CBI
45. Arun Kumar , Joint Director, Delhi, CBI
46. Rishi Raj Singh, Joint Director, Mumbai, CBI
47. Dhirendra Nath Biswas, Additional Superintendent Of Police, Kolkata,

CBI

Central Industrial Security Force

48. Harsha Vardhan Chaturvedi, Inspector General, Nes Hq, Kolkata, CISF
49. A. Syed Zafarulla, Senior Commandant, Neyveli, CISF
Central Reserve Police Force
50. Rajesh Pratap Singh, Inspector General Of Police, , New Delhi,
CRPF
51. Rajendra Ghai, Deputy Inspector General Of Police, Gandhi Nagar,
Gujarat, CRPF
52. Gopal Das Pewal, Deputy Inspector General Of Police(Prov), FHQ, New
Delhi, CRPF
53. M.S. Balakesavan, Deputy Inspector General Of Police,
Telegaon, Pune, Maharashtra, CRPF
54. A. M Muhammed, Deputy Inspector General Of Police, Cws-I, Rampur
(UP), CRPF

Ministry Of Home Affairs

55. Suraj Mukh Gauba, Assistant Director, New Delhi, Ministry Of Home
Affairs
56. Shree Ram Singh, Assistant Director, Drtc, Shivpuri, Ministry Of Home
Affairs
57. Mahendra Jha, Assistant Director, New Delhi, Ministry Of Home
Affairs
58. Surinder Nath Tagra, Assistant Director, Mumbai, Ministry Of Home
Affairs
59. Hanuman Prasad Yadav, Deputy Central Intelligence Of ficer, Jaipur,

Ministry Of Home Affairs

60. Shiv Prasad Mehra, Assistant Director, Delhi, Ministry Of Home
Affairs
61. Brij Bihari Singh, Assistant Central Intelligence Of ficer Grade-I/G,
New Delhi, Ministry Of Home Affairs

Indo-Tibetan Border Police

62. Hira Singh, Deputy Inspector General, ITBP Academy, ITBP
63. Vijay Singh Yadav, Assistant Commandant, 19th Bn, Sarahan, Shimla,
ITBP


Sashastra Seema Bal

64. Rajendra Singh Negi, Inspector General, SSB Academy, Srinagar, SSB
Bureau Of Police Research And Development
65. Prasun Mukherjee, Director General , Bpr&D New Delhi, BPR & D
National Crime Record Bureau
66. Mukesh Chetal, Deputy Superintendent Of Police, New Delhi, NCRB
National Investigation Agency
67. Loknath Behera, Of ficer on Special Duty, New Delhi, National
Investigation Agency
Ministry Of Railways
68. Roop Kumar Dashru Kore, Inspector, Pendra Road, Railways
Protection Force, Division Bilaspur , M/O Railways

Khabren...

 

Nation pays homage: President Pratibha Patil and defence services chiefs pay tribute to martyrs at the Amar Jawan Jyoti in New Delhi on Saturday on the 63rd Independence Day. 

Ex-Armymen plan to sue govt

Sridhar Kumaraswami
New Delhi
Aug. 15: A group of former major-generals is planning to file a lawsuit against the government for not granting "One Rank One Pension" for ex-servicemen. A corpus fund could also be created to fund the proposed legal battle against the government.
One of the former major-generals, speaking on condition of anonymity to this newspaper, said that the group of former major-generals are also planning to send a legal notice to the defence secretary, ministry of defence (MoD). The group of former major-generals who retired before 2006 is considering a legal battle on the grounds that they are getting less pension than Brigadiers who retired after June, 2006.
"This issue was deliberated at length and it was decided that government is not likely to approve OROP. Veterans would have to knock at the door of courts to get a favourable decision and force the Govt to agree to give OROP ... It was decided that preparation for filing the lawsuit should be completed at the earliest and lawsuit should be filed without delay," stated a former officer.
OROP refers to the grant of pensions (according to rank) irrespective of the date of retirement. For instance, this means that an officer retiring as major-general ought to get the same pension as another officer who retired as major-general irrespective of date of retirement.
In his Independence Day address, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, "We are proud of our brave soldiers.
It is our duty to ensure that ex-servicemen are able to lead a life of comfort. We have accepted the recommendations of the committee constituted to examine the issue of pension of ex-servicemen. This will lead to increased pension for about 12 lakh retired jawans and Junior Commissioned Officers."
However, ex-servicemen point out that there was no mention of "One Rank One Pension" for former (full-commission) officers in the speech and add that the government has not accepted OROP even for jawans and JCOs (who are personnel below officer rank-PBOR). The government had recently announced measures for reducing the disparities in pensions among PBORs. Thousands of medals had earlier been returned by aggrieved ex-servicemen.

Source : Asian Age

Lady Army officers scale Siachen peak

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 15

A team comprising only lady officers of the Indian Army scaled the Siachen glacier early this morning, making it the first ladies team to have reached the highest battlefield in the world.

Located in north-eastern J&K, Saichen glacier is totally snow- bound throughout the year and is one of the treacherous stretches of land with deep crevices and steep walls of ice.

The Army is seeing this “an endeavour towards women empowerment”. The lady officers led by Major Meghna Aktadikar reached the highest tip Indira col ( 6117 metres) at 6: 45 am today. They had started off on August 3 when the Vice Chief of the Indian Army, Lt-Gen Noble Thamburaj, had flagged off the expedition.

The officers are from the corps of engineers. A lady medical officer, Major N Linyu, has accompanied the team. The expedition comprised the following officers: Major Meghna Aktadikar, Major Neha Bhatnagar, Major Pradiya Kulkarni, Major Meghna R, Capt Shalini Datta, Capt Pushpa Kumari, Capt RP Parashar, Lt Namrata Rathore, Lt Girija Mohalkar, Lt Vijay Laxmi Thakur, Lt Garima Pal and Lt Neelam Rathore.

For the final summit, the entire team was divided into two groups and started the climb at midnight yesterday. The Tricolour was hoisted by the summiteers.

LTTE supporters burn Sonia’s portrait

N Ravikumar
Tribune News Service

Chennai, August 15
Marking the beginning of a fresh round of protests against the Congress demanding the rehabilitation of about three lakh internally displaced persons in Sri Lankan camps, the party’s flag and portrait of its leader Sonia Gandhi were found burnt at the party headquarters in Cuddalore.
Congress functionaries and workers, who arrived at the party headquarters to celebrate Independence Day were shocked to see the party’s flag and leader portrait in a burnt condition.
A flag of the LTTE was found near the burnt items. The functionaries immediately informed the incident to the police.
After a lull, the Lankan Tamils issue is back on the political agenda of state politics. State nationalist groups are holding public meetings at many parts of the state, highlighting the condition of internally displaced Tamil people, especially women and children in the Lankan army controlled camps.
Thol Thirumavalavan, a pro-LTTE ally of the Congress, who was elected to the Lok Sabha on a pro-Tiger plank and countered the attacks of another pro-Tiger leader Vaiko, will hold a conference titled “Eelam will rise again” on August 17 here (Eelam is the homeland of Tamils in Sri Lanka).
The Sri Lankan Tamils Protection Movement, comprising the BJP, CPI, MDMK, PMK and other Tamil nationalist groups, too, is organising a rally in the city on August 20. The attendance and enthusiasm during both events is expected to determine whether the issue will gain momentum in the state or not.

Andhra to scrap ‘orderly’ system

Suresh Dharur
Tribune News Service

I WONDER : Were they officially ever authorised anything like this ????

Hyderabad, August 15
A demeaning colonial practice of engaging constables and home guards as domestic servants at the homes of senior police officers will soon be a thing of the past in Andhra Pradesh.
The state government has decided to do away with “orderly” system that is still prevalent in the police department.
The decision came in the wake of death of a constable, P Muralinath, under mysterious circumstances while on duty on July 29. The armed reserve constable was deputed to work as orderly at the Delhi residence of Additional Director-General of Police Vivek Dubey, chief of the anti-terrorist wing of the state police, OCTOPUS.

More minority dists on anvil
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 15
The number of minority concentration districts (MCDs) in the country would rise beyond the existing 90, with the government making changes in the eligibility criteria for such a district.
Right now, a district with 25 per cent minority population is considered an MCD, which is then entitled to the benefits of several UPA programmes, more specifically from the government’s Rs 3,000 crore multi-sectoral scheme designed for the development of such districts. But now, the ministry of minority affairs has decided to relax the existing cut-off and add two qualifying clauses whereby a district with 20 per cent minority population can claim to be an MCD provided it has a minority population of five lakh. The proposal has already been flagged for the Planning Commission’s consideration. The commission would look at it in its mid-term review slated shortly.
Confirming the development to The Tribune today, minority affairs minister Salman Khursheed said he had been approached by several state chief ministers who said a lot of districts in their areas were being left out due to the existing eligibility norms for MCDs.
“There are cases in many states where some districts have 24 per cent minorities, just one less than the current requirement. We are proposing to relax the percentage to 20 with a qualifying clause that such a district must have 5 lakh minority numbers,” Khursheed said.

Envoys to discuss foreign policy issues
Ashok Tuteja
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 15
More than 100 Indian Ambassadors and heads of missions (HOMs) have been called to the headquarters for a meeting on August 24 to discuss various foreign policy issues and how the country could effectively discharge its increasing responsibilities in a fast-changing geo-political situation in the world.

This will be the first meeting of the Indian envoys after the UPA returned to power at the Centre with huge expectations from the people that it will, among other things, be able to chalk out an independent foreign policy, now that it does not have to depend on the Left parties for its survival.

However, some of the recent foreign policy initiatives of the Manmohan Singh government seem to have boomeranged, particularly the joint statement issued with Pakistan at Sharm-Al-Sheikh in which India is perceived to have compromised with its position on the issue of terrorism. The end-use monitoring arrangement for defence procurements with the US and the G-8 countries resolution on not transferring enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technologies to the countries which are not signatories to the NPT have also not gone down well with the Opposition as well as strategic experts.

It is against this backdrop that the Indian envoys’ meeting is taking place. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to address the conclave, instructing the top Indian diplomats on how they should go about dealing with various important international issues. External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who was the Foreign Minister earlier, are also expected to address the meeting. Nirupama Rao, who took charge as the Foreign Secretary only this month, will get an opportunity to firmly tell her colleagues what is expected of them while serving in different world capitals.

This is the second such meeting being held in less than a year. The last such conclave was held in December last year shortly after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks when India launched a major diplomatic offensive against Pakistan for failing to check the misuse of its territory for terrorist activities against India. 


New mobile number series to begin with ‘8’ 


Sandeep Joshi NEW DELHI: Rapid growth of mobile subscriber base in the country has forced the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) to not only open the ‘95’ series that was so far being used for intra-circle connectivity by landline users, but also start preparing to launch an altogether new mobile number series beginning with ‘8.’
With over 1-crore mobile subscribers being added every month and the all-India mobile subscriber base crossing the 42-crore mark, the current ‘9’ series is likely to get exhausted by next year. Though DoT managed to avert the crisis for the time being by opening the ‘95’ series, the department, along with telecom operators, is now busy preparing for the launch of the ‘8’ series for mobile subscribers from next year.
A few months ago DoT had to end intra-circle landline communication facility through ‘95’ dialling as the existing mobile number capacity was fast exhausting. They withdrew this service and reverted to the old model of STD codes, thereby getting the ‘95’ series vacated for mobile subscribers.
The opening of the ‘95’ series gave them 10 crore new numbers, out of which over 5 crore are likely to be used by mobile operators while the rest would be kept as ‘reserve’ by DoT.
All this has now prompted DoT to rethink its future plans.
Initially, some senior officials suggested use of an 11-digit mobile number instead of the existing 10-digit that would have taken care of the long-term demand, but it would have meant heavy expenditure to upgrade telecom infrastructure to make it compatible to the new series, for which the department and mobile operators were not ready. DoT finally decided to consider the idea of introducing mobile number series starting with ‘8’.
However, it will only be a short-term solution to the “problem”.
In 2003 DoT came up with a 30-year numbering plan, but the rapid growth in the mobile subscriber base, mainly due to the booming rural market, has forced it to relook into its policy and consider an 11-digit numbering system. Therefore, when the ‘8’ series gets exhausted, ‘11’ digit mobile numbers will be introduced.

165 people tested positive for swine flu

 

I WONDER : Still can we claim that the govt has successfully contained and controlled the spread ???

New Delhi: One hundred and sixty five people on Saturday tested positive for swine flu — the highest on a single day — while two deaths were reported from Bangalore.

Of the 165 new cases reported, 97 are from Maharashtra, and in the state the maximum of 69 cases are from Pune itself, according to an official release.

All the cases in Maharashtra are indigenous cases with no known overseas travel history. Similarly all the cases reported from Delhi, Bangalore, Mangalore, Kolkata, Shillong, Mizoram, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Faridabad and Ahmedabad are also indigenous. However, some of those who tested positive for the disease had travelled abroad. While a forty-eight year old male tested positive for the disease in Patna had travelled to UK, another 23-year-old woman from Noida had gone to Canada. A 20-year-old girl from Chandigarh had a travel history of Hongkong, while among the three cases reported from Gurgaon is a 32-year-old man who had visited Germany.

A total of 7752 persons have been tested so far out of which 1555 tested positive for Influenza A H1N1 (swine flu). 713 out of the 7752 persons have been identified through entry screening, 1413 through contact tracing and the rest were self reported. Of the 1555 positive cases, 689 have been discharged, the release said.

BSF arrests 4 Pak intruders

Aug. 15: The Border Security Force (BSF) foiled a major infiltration attempt in the Ferozepur Sector of the Punjab Frontier, where four Pakistan nationals were held with a sophisticated night vision device, weapons and narcotics.
The intruders, all young Pakistanis in their 20s, were attempting to slip across a riverine section of the frontier when a BSF patrol spotted and trailed them until they actually crossed over to the Indian side between BOP Tapu and BOP Kulwant.
Between them the men were carrying two Chinese-made nine-millimetre pistols with ammunition, two kilograms of high quality heroin and a night vision device to help them manoeuvre in the dark.
The infiltration appears to have been deliberately planned on the night intervening the Independence Days of Pakistan and India, perhaps in the hope that the BSF would be busy with preparations for celebration.
This is the first instance where night vision equipment has been recovered from infiltrators on the Punjab border. Though ostensibly part of the lucrative narcotics smuggling racket, which is known to operate along this frontier, the BSF is closely exploring possible links with terrorism.
Besides the gadgetry, numerous mobile SIM cards and currency in the intruders’ possession, officials said four men being used when the relatively small amount of heroin could have easily and perhaps more safely, been brought in by a single carrier, was “suspicious.”
Officials’ apprehensions are also fuelled by recent intelligence inputs indicating the increasing presence of pro-Taliban terrorist elements in several frontier villages of Pakistani Punjab.
Such jihadi elements are believed to have been responsible for as many as five rocket attacks targeting Indian border villages in early July.
While the Pakistan Rangers are yet to come back with a plausible explanation about the rocket strikes, there have been instances where sections of the Pakistani spectators at the daily retreat ceremony at the Attari-Wagah Border indulged in jeering Indian crowds by holding up Pakistan flags embossed with images that look like Iraqi Scud missiles.

Source : Deccan Chronical

 

  

I Wonder : If a small country like SriLanka can issue such advisories then why did the Indian govt failled to do it right in the begining, We all know the virus has come in through are well protected AirPorts without Passport and Visas.

We all can guess who is responsible for uncontrolled mess.