Excelsior... Nation

Maharashtra bandh affects normal life, scribe beaten up

MUMBAI, Apr 25: A scribe was beaten up in the metropolis and scores of agitators were detained in Maharashtra while attempting to block rail ........more

Orissa unit of TC
merges with BJD

BHUBANESWAR, Apr 25: The Orissa unit of the Trinamool Congress has unanimously decided to merge with the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD)......more

Explosive number
plates to beat thieves

JOHANNESBURG, Apr 25: James Bond’s technical right-hand man "Q" would be proud of South African boffins who have come up with exploding....more

Dalits demand inclusion
of caste discrimination
in UNWCAR

NEW DELHI, Apr 25: The national campaign on Dalit human rights today demanded that the caste discrimination should be.........more

Leopard claims its
4th victim

DEHRA DUN, Apr 25: A man-eating leopard prowling in Tehri area near the Doon Valley for several months now, has claimed its fourth victim.....more

Observers appointed for Shahjhanpur LS bypoll

LUCKNOW, Apr 25: The Election Commission has appointed three observers from south and north-east states for the lone Shahjhanpur Lok..........more

Major haul of
explosive material

KANPUR, Apr 25: In a major haul, police today recovered over 165 kgs of explosive material and five crude bombs on day three of specia.....more

There will not be any sympathy wave in
favour of Jaya: TN BJP

CHENNAI, Apr 25: The Tamil Nadu unit of the BJP today claimed that there would not be any "sympathy wave" in favour of.....more

Maharashtra bandh affects normal life, scribe beaten up

MUMBAI, Apr 25: A scribe was beaten up in the metropolis and scores of agitators were detained in Maharashtra while attempting to block rail and road traffic even as the state-wide bandh called by trade unions and nine political parties to protest centre’s ‘anti labour’ policies affected normal life.

Several activists were detained when they tried to block rail traffic at Bhandup, Dadar, Andheri, Jogeshwari, Malad, Borivali and marine lines suburban stations, police said adding that exact number of detenues was yet to be compiled.

The trade union leaders accused police of resorting to lathicharge at Jogeshwari and Vikhroli suburban stations. Police however, denied the charge.

‘Asian Age’ reporter Vaibhav Purandare was roughed up by alleged Shiv Sena activists at Suburban Elphinstone road station. The Sainiks were objecting to his covering the agitation, the newspaper said.

Purandare was later admitted to Kem Hospital at Parel, sources added.

The agitators also staged Rasta-Roko at Western and Eastern Express Highway.

Best buses, taxis and autorickshaws in city and suburbs were off the roads while the suburban trains were running behind schedule. However, the time table of long distance trains was not affected due to the bandh, a railway spokesman said.

Sharad Rao, convenor of trade union joint action committee claimed bandh was 100 per cent successful.

Elaborate security arrangements were made in the metropolis.

Trade and industrial activity remained suspended in response to the bandh.

The bandh elsewhere in the state too was successful and and affected the today-to-day activities of people with the office goers remaining indoors and factory workers abstaining from work.

Streets in the metropolis wore a deserted look.

The bandh evoked partial response in Nagpur with majority of shops and business establishments remaining open in the busy commercial areas of the city.

The city buses were taken off the roads after reports of stone pelting at few places, police said. However, the train services remained unaffected, a central railway spokesman told PTI.

Workers owing allegiance to various trade unions took out a morcha which Parwana Bhawan and was addressed by leaders.

Mumbai-Nagpur Indian Airlines flight was, cancelled today.

The strike threw normal life out of gear in Nasik and Pune. (PTI)

Orissa unit of TC merges with BJD

BHUBANESWAR, Apr 25: The Orissa unit of the Trinamool Congress has unanimously decided to merge with the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD).

Party spokesman Sudhanshu Mohapatra said in a release today that the decision was taken at the general body meeting of the party held here yesterday under the chairmanship of its convenor and former Union Minister Bhajaman Behera.

He said the general body has authorised behera to finalise the merger with the BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik when he returns from Delhi later today.

The meeting, Mohapatra said, ‘expressed deep resentment’ over the decision of the Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee to quit the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and join hands with the Congress to fight the Assembly elections in West Bengal.

Banerjee also did not pay much attention to the party organisation in Orissa and as Railway Minister neglected the state, the party alleged.

Although the strength of TC in Orissa, which has one member in the State Assembly, is of little significance, the merger decision has already triggered much speculation in political circles. (PTI)

Explosive number plates to beat thieves

JOHANNESBURG, Apr 25: James Bond’s technical right-hand man "Q" would be proud of South African boffins who have come up with exploding number plates designed to beat car thieves.

A firm in Johannesburg offers the plates which automatically blast off the car if a vehicle is started up without the onboard alarm being switched off, displaying underneath the words "stolen" for all to see.

"We’ve only had them on the market for a months and we are already sold out," said Vanessa Jackson of the RAC group which makes the plates. They cost 699 rand a set or around 90 US dollars.

"At the moment we’re working on a model which is activated by car- napping," said Jackson. South African motorists live in fear of the nappers who lie in wait at traffic lights and force owners at gunpoint to hand over their car keys. An estimated 100,000 cars a year are stolen on the streets of South Africa every year. (DPA)

Dalits demand inclusion of caste discrimination in UNWCAR

NEW DELHI, Apr 25: The national campaign on Dalit human rights today demanded that the caste discrimination should be put on the agenda of the upcoming United Nations world conference against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (WCAR) to make the abolition of untouchability and caste discriminations an international priority.

Addressing a press conference here, NCDHR convenor N Paul Divakar criticised the Government opposition and obstruction to the efforts of NGOs working for human rights of Dalits for inclusion of caste discrimination in the WCAR on the ground that caste is not same as race and hence has no relevance to the UN conference.

He said that the NCDHR has approached the National Human Rights Commission and the National Commission for SC/ST to mobilise their support to get the caste discriminations, which are more severe and comprehensive, on the international agenda.

Numerous NGOs from all across Asia would gather from April 27 in Kathmandu for a three-day Asia Pacific regional NGO coordination forum to demand that the Government should stop its suppression of the inclusion of caste discrimination that was of global proportion affecting about 260 million people of South Asia in the WCAR. Caste discrimination, which are basically occupation and decent based, also affects the Bukaru people of Japan, Ozu of Nigeria, Roma of Europe and other marginalised communities, he pointed out.

The forum would recommend that the WCAR should not only recognised racial discrimination but also those based on caste and social origin and discrimination related to migrant workers, trafficking in women, indigenous people and national minorities, he said. It would examine the Government’s position on these issues and evolve strategies to ensure that these issues were adequately addressed at WCAR and other UN bodies.

The NCDHR, which is a confederation of 35 NGOs working for the human rights of Dalits, said that the Indian Government which has pledged its support to Roma community against discrimination and also to those struggling against apartheid in South Africa was standing in the way of Dalits seeking international support to their struggle. "Its high time the Government should accept that the country faces a serious problem of caste discrimination and devise ways to minimise and eradicate it," Mr Divakar said.

Apprehending denial of passports to Dalit activists wishing to attend the WCAR meeting at durban, Mr Divakar said that the regional forum at Kathmandu would demand that the Government should refrain from such a step.

The forum would also ask the United Nations to declare untouchability as a crime against humanity and appoint a special rapporteur on caste discrimination. Including caste system as a major source of discrimination, the WCAR should adopt immediate measures to eradicate persecution of Dalits, Burakumin and other communities facing discrimination on the basis of caste or descent.

The Forum would also demand the declaration of April 14, birthday of Dr B R Ambedkar, as the international day of Dalit solidarity. It would ask for the UN development agencies to pay particular attention to caste violence and assess the existing programmes with regard to caste and develop strategies to curb abuse and encourage accountability.

Prof S K Thorat of the Jawaharlal Nehru University and member of the core group of the NCDHR, said that the ground level realities of caste discrimination were very shocking and asked the Government should take effective measures to implement and enforce a time-bound programme to abolish untouchability and the caste system.

He said that forum would urge the Government to take all necessary constitutional, legislative and administrative measures, including appropriate forms of affirmative action, to prohibit and redress caste discriminations.

The Government should enact and enforce laws related to compulsory primary education and elimination of child labour, bonded labour, manual scavenging and Devdasi system.

Moreover, adequate funds should be allocated for effectively implementing programmes for the socio-economic empowerment of communities discriminated against, he added. (UNI)

Leopard claims its 4th victim

DEHRA DUN, Apr 25: A man-eating leopard prowling in Tehri area near the Doon Valley for several months now, has claimed its fourth victim.

A 12-year-old girl was picked up by it on Monday when she was returning after rounding up the cattle. Her mauled body was found near Tailadi village.

The villagers have been living in dread since January, when the maneater first struck.

Shooters hired by the Forest Department have failed to eliminate the leopard. A hunter from Haryana has now been taken to Tailadi. (UNI)

Observers appointed for Shahjhanpur LS bypoll

LUCKNOW, Apr 25: The Election Commission has appointed three observers from south and north-east states for the lone Shahjhanpur Lok Sabha byelection in Uttar Pradesh.

Official sources said the Commission had appointed two senior IAS officers as general observers while an income tax officer for recording the expenditures to be incurred by the candidates.

Mrs. Satbir Silas, chairperson, Poncare, Pondichery and Mr. Ranjan Chaterjee, Commissioner Secretary, Education, Meghalaya Secretariat in Shillong had been entrusted the responsibility of performing as observers while Mr A Dhanaraj, JRS, DCIT-JR, in the Income Tax Department at Chennai would work as an expenditure observer during the byelection.

The election was necessiated due to the death of Mr Jitendra Prasada.

The Congress has fielded his widow Ms. Kanta Prasad for the seat and she is pitted against Mr Satyapal Singh Yadav, former Union Minister. The main opposition Samajwadi Party has nominated 1996 Congress winner of the seat Mr Ram Murti Singh Verma while the Bahujan Samaj Party has Mr Anees Khan alias Phool Babu, a BSP MLA from neighbouring Beesalpur who had unsuccessfully contested against Ms. Maneka Gandhi in the last election for Pilibhit Lok Sabha seat. (UNI)