Excelsior... Nation

Jayalalithaa

CHENNAI, July 10: Breaking her ten-day silence, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today came out strongly in defence of the policemen who ....more

Omar Abdullah

Vajpayee sends
Omar as special
emissary to Libya

NEW DELHI, July 10: In the run up to the crucial summit between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today sent Minister of State .......more

HC pulls up DDA for
deferring demolition
due to Musharraf visit

NEW DELHI, July 10: The Delhi High Court today took strong exception to Delhi Development....more

KPs protest Pakistan’s
invitation to Hurriyat

NEW DELHI, July 10: All India Kashmiri Samaj (AIKS) today protested Pakistan’s invitation to Hurriyat leaders at a reception at its High ......more

Charges framed
against Sukhram

NEW DELHI, July 10: A city court today framed charges against Himachal Vikas Congress chief and former Union Minister Sukhram under various .....more

NHRC for ‘institutionalising’ human rights culture

DEHRA DUN, July 10: National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Chairman J S Verma today called for "pro-active" custodial care on the part of prison officials to protect the rights of inmates. ....more

Convert LOC, AGPL
into permanent border:
Former Army chief

KOLKATA, July 11: As India and Pakistan prepare for the summit level talks, former Army chief General Shankar Roy Choudhury today said the only . ....more

India jumps 13 places
to rank 115 on human
development index

NEW DELHI, July 10: India jumped 13 places to rank 115th on the Human Development Index (HDI) due to consistent progress in poverty reduction.......more

Jaya defends action against Karunanidhi

CHENNAI, July 10: Breaking her ten-day silence, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today came out strongly in defence of the policemen who arrested Karunanidhi and two Union Ministers and accused the former Chief Minister of telling "blatant lie" of police excesses to evoke public sympathy.

In a ten-page statement, she said Karunanidhi’s decision to boycott the Justice Raman Commision of inquiry to probe the police "excesses" in the June 30 arrest episode was due to fear that the truth would come out if he cooperated with the Commision.

Jayalalithaa said Karunanidhi’s role in the flyover scam was that of a "facilitator of corruption of his son" and he was arrested for making enquiries in this regard.

She said if Karunanidhi decided to cooperate with the Commision, it would be binding on Sun TV to produce all its raw footage of the incident.

The truth would come out that Sun TV had clearly managed to evoke people’s sympathy through "selective editing" and "clever manipulation" of visuals as a ploy to create a law and order problem in the state and to divert people’s attention, she said.

Defending the arrest of Karunanidhi in the wee hours, the Chief Minister said he was not manhandled by the police at any stage. She also denied allegations that police broke open the door of Karunanidhi’s bedroom to effect his arrest.

Jayalalithaa said the police team headed by Deputy Inspector of Police Mohammad Ali followed all norms of decency while arresting Karunanidhi. They made a ‘polite entry’ into the ground floor and explained the purpose of their visit to the servants, who opened the door.

She said the police tried to communicate with Karunanidhi or his family members over intercom. ‘Only after eliciting no reply, did they go upstairs. Again, they spent nearly ten minutes knocking the door, which lead to the hall upstairs. They knocked at the bedroom door of Karunanidhi and communicated with his wife through the closed door. They waited till the door was opened’, she said.

Justifying the arrest of Karunanidhi in the late night hours, she said the police manual rules stipulated that a political leader, with mass following had necessarily to be arrested only after midnight, so as to prevent untoward incidents and law and order problems.

She said Karunanidhi was not manhandled at any stage. Had he been manhandled, he would not have come out of his bedroom smiling and beaming at everyone.

His complaint of shoulder pain due to manhandling was a "blatant lie" being told to evoke public sympathy, the Chief Minister said.

Referring to Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi’s interview to an english magazine about her father’s shoulder pains due to the alleged police excesses, Jayalalithaa recalled that Kanimozhi, in an interview to a Tamil magazine during the May 10 elections, had mentioned about his shoulder pain.

Justifying the arrests carried out without a warrant, she said no arrest warrant or search warrant was required when the police was dealing with a cognisable offence under Section 41 of Criminal Procedure Code.

She said the police video tapes clearly showed that Karunanidhi’s bedroom was not opened by force. It also showed that police neither barged into the room nor beat up Karunanidhi. They also did not forcibly drag him out, she claimed and alleged that Union Ministers Murasoli Maran and T R Baalu were deliberately propagating ‘despicable lies’.

Defending his arrest in the flyover scam, she said there was documentary evidence to prove that over Rs 12 crore had been "swindled" by Chennai Mayor and Karunanidhi’s son M K Stalin and his associates.

"Corruption of this scale in a single deal was possible only because the State Government headed by Karunanidhi colluded to give the mayor unlimited financial powers" which no other mayors enjoyed, she said.

What followed were kickbacks in the award of contracts, over-invoicing of funds to the tune of Rs 12 crore and undocumented corruption of several others, she said. (PTI)

Vajpayee sends Omar as special emissary to Libya

NEW DELHI, July 10: In the run up to the crucial summit between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today sent Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Omar Abdullah as his special emissary to Libya, informed sources said here.

Omar is carrying a letter from Vajpayee to Libyan President M Gaddafi, they said.

The sources said the letter was intended to make the Indian position on the Kashmir issue clear to Libya, a member of Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC).

Of late, Libya had been vocal about Kashmir and made attempts to rake up the issue at the just concluded OIC meet in Mali. (PTI)

HC pulls up DDA for deferring demolition due to Musharraf visit

NEW DELHI, July 10: The Delhi High Court today took strong exception to Delhi Development Authority (DDA) citing Pakistan President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s visit to walled city as one of the reason for seeking to defer action for removal of illegal constructions around historic Jama Masjid here.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Arijit Passayat and Justice D K Jain took serious view of non compliance of court’s earlier orders for demolition of illegal structures around the grand Mughal period mosque saying the directions to this effect were issued much before the announcement of the summit meeting.

Warning to initiate contempt of court proceedings against the DDA Vice-Chairman and MCD Commissioner, the bench allowed them time till August 16 to clear the area of all unauthorised structures saying the order in this regard were "categorical".

"The area will be cleared by August 16. If they failed to do so, action for contempt of court will be initiated against the DDA Vice-Chairman and Commissioner MCD," the bench said.

Earlier DDA counsel Jagmohan Sabharwal sought additional six weeks time to implement the court orders saying the same could not be implemented due to the proposed visit of an important dignitary (Musharraf) to the walled sity.

Musharraf is schedule to visit his ancestral Neharwali Haveli in Daryaganj on July 14.

The court had given specific directions in its orders on November 28, last year and and February 28 for demolition of all unauthorised structures around Jama Masjid, an important protected heritage building. (PTI)

KPs protest Pakistan’s invitation to Hurriyat

NEW DELHI, July 10: All India Kashmiri Samaj (AIKS) today protested Pakistan’s invitation to Hurriyat leaders at a reception at its High Commission here, saying it would ‘provide legitimacy" to 73 separatist and militant groups responsible for devastation in Jammu and Kashmir.

"The Hurriyat only represents the militant groups in the state and has always created obstacles in creating a vibrant democratic system there," AIKS senior vice president Gautam Kaul told a press conference here.

Lauding the opposition stand of boycotting the high tea reception at the Pakistani High Commission, Mr Kaul said Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf had not made his position clear on the Kashmir issue.

"The Pakistani General has merely stated that Kashmir will be the core issue of his talks at the July 15 summit meeting with the Indian Prime Minister. But he has not yet disclosed any plans about the future of the people of the state, especially its minority population."

The Hurriyat leadership had also maintained a studied silence on the fate of the people of the state while negotiating a settlement of the Kashmir problem, he pointed out. "The Hurriyat is estranged from the mainstream democratic politics and has no legitimate rights to be involved in any talks on the Kashmir issue."

While welcoming the Vajpayee-Musharraf summit, Mr Kaul reiterated the AIKS’ stand that kashmir was non-negotiable. "Moreover, Art. 3 of the Indian Constitution prohibits everyone from effecting changes in the international border of the country. The Indian leadership is bound by this constitutional provision and must take due care of it while dealing the Kashmir issue with Gen. Musharraf."

Mr Kaul said the AIKS welcomed any dialogue on Kashmir that helped lessen tension between India and Pakistan. But if the talks had to succeed, then it must hinge on three principles - the solution does not endanger the plurality and communal peace in the country it does not undermine the territorial integrity of India it does not weaken its democratic polity.

He said the secular and moderate communities in the Valley had been victims of ethnic cleansing through waging of a proxy war. "The disappearance of Pandits from the Valley has removed the living concepts of secularism and democracy from the local Muslim populace, and this vaccum now has been filled by the imported fundamentalist doctrine."

Besides Hindu Pandits, the largest minority group in the state, Gujjars, Bakerwals, Sikhs, Khatris and sections of the Shia community had also been pushed out of the Valley, he said.

"A large section of the dislocated people, whose economic life has been turned into a shamble, see the summit as ‘a ray of hope’ for the restoration of peace and economic prosperity. It is now upto the two leaders to convert that ray of hope into a beam of sunlight."

Mr Kaul said the Central Governments over the years had worried too much of what the world thought of "our actions." This was done at the cost of national interests. "The AIKS now feels that only national interest should count and the world needs to be ignored." The cost of protecting our beliefs has been very high in terms of deaths of civilians and servicemen in Kashmir in the last ten years. A final solution must recognise these sacrifices made for protecting the integrity of the state, he contended.

"Violence cannot be quantified but their sacrifices should not be put on the backburner while the issue is discussed at the Agra summit," he said. (UNI)

Charges framed against Sukhram

NEW DELHI, July 10: A city court today framed charges against Himachal Vikas Congress chief and former Union Minister Sukhram under various provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act for allegedly amassing disproportionate wealth of over Rs five crores between 1991-96.

Special Judge R L Chugh, after framing the charges, asked the former Union Minister whether he pleaded guilty or not. Sukhram denied the charges and said he preferred a trial.

The judge fixed September 11 for intiation of the trial proceedings in the case.

CBI had alleged that Sukhram had amassed assets worth Rs 5,36,67,135 during 1991-96 when he was a Member of Parliament and also a minister. The agency had filed the chargesheet against the former minister on June 9, 1997. (PTI)

NHRC for ‘institutionalising’ human rights culture

DEHRA DUN, July 10: National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Chairman J S Verma today called for "pro-active" custodial care on the part of prison officials to protect the rights of inmates.

"Actions of police in their conduct towards prisoners must be pro-active and not just reactive. Custodial care should convert itself into custodial justice and rehabilitation of a criminal should be seen as an important part of the process of justice," said Justice Verma, after inaugurating a one-day workshop on "human rights in prison administration" in the Doon Valley this morning.

The workshop, the first of its kind to be held in Uttaranchal, is being attended by Jail Superintendents from all the districts of the hill state.

"Prisoners only lose their right to liberty but all their other human rights must be protected and looked after by the prison officials, Mr Verma said. The working conditions of officials and living conditions of prisoners were being studied by the nhrc which would recommend the improvements to the Government, he informed.

"Every prisoner is entitled to be treated with dignity. It has to be borne in mind that just by entering a prison, a person does not cease to be human," he pointed out. Adding, he said, " training in various trades must be given to all prisoners to keep them engaged usefully and equipping them with a means of livelihood for their future."

He expressed great concern at the widespread prevalence of the HIV virus among prison inmates, especially in Mumbai. He said the arthur road prison in Mumbai had several HIV-infected prisoners.

Earlier Mr Chamanlal, special rapporteur with the NHRC, said the NHRC had been given the special task to look into the human rights of prisoners and bring about desired improvement in their condition. "We are conducting this workshop to interact with the officials who are working at the cutting edge level in prisons," he said, adding that this would give the NHRC an idea of the problems they faced on a day-to-day basis.

"We cannot deny that you all are working under pathetic conditions and this must be improved," he added.

The custodial aspect of prisons was important but so was the human aspect and a balance had to be struck between the two, he said.

The workshop is being attended by Mr Ashok Kant Sharan, DGP, Uttaranchal and several other senior police officials from the hill state. (UNI)

Convert LOC, AGPL into permanent border:
Former Army chief

KOLKATA, July 11: As India and Pakistan prepare for the summit level talks, former Army chief General Shankar Roy Choudhury today said the only possible solution to the Kashmir problem could be the conversion of the Line of Control (LoC) and Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) in Siachen into a permanent border between the two countries.

"There is no military solution to the Kashmir problem. A political solution is a must, but a political solution that suggests secession is not acceptable," he told PTI here.

Stating that the Kashmir problem can be solved only if India and Pakistan give up their "rigid stands," he said the issue should be resolved in accordance with the Simla agreement and the Lahore declaration.

The only possible solution to the issue, Roy Choudhury said could be conversion of LoC and AGPL into a permanent border.

He said India’s invitation to Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf for talks was the result of two factors—New Delhi’s eagerness to restore peace in the Kashmir Valley and US interest in seeing that the issue is resolved peacefully in view of India and Pakistan acquiring nuclear capability.

In reply to a question Roy Choudhury said "the Lahore bus journey and the Kargil episode were not interlinked. The surprise by the Pakistanis was achieved not because of (Indian) unpreparedness due to Lahore, but for other reasons like intelligence failure." (PTI)

India jumps 13 places to rank 115 on human
development index

NEW DELHI, July 10: India jumped 13 places to rank 115th on the Human Development Index (HDI) due to consistent progress in poverty reduction.

This is brought out in the human development report released here today and in several other cities of the world. The central message of the report is that major new initiatives are needed to ensure that new technologies address the most pressing needs of the world’s poor.

The report 12th in the annual series, has ranked 162 countries on the HDI, a composite measure that that includes life expectancy, educational enrollment and adult literacy.

Dedicated to the theme making new technologies work for human development, the report has for the first time developed Technology achievement Index (TDI) which ranks countries by the level of diffusion of technology in each country. The TAI, which has ranked 73 countries puts India on the 63rd position, provides a country-by-country map of huge inequalities in education and skills required to use technology. The report recognises India as home to a world -class technology hub in Bangalore. India is classified among ‘dynamic adopters’.

The report was presented to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee by Information Technology Minister Pramod Mahajan and deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha Najma Heptullah, who is also UNDP’s distinguished human development ambassador.

Earlier at a function of the report’s at the UN office here, Mr Mahajan, Ms Heptullah, noted agricultural scientist M S Swaminathan and UN resident coordinator in India Brenda Gael McSweeny stressed the urgent need for stepping up research effort in four areas. These are vaccines for malaria, HIV and tuberculosis high-yielding, pest resistant and drought tolerant varieties of staple foods of South Asian and sub-Saharan Africa, low cost computers and wirless connectivitiy for the poor and low cost energy systems.

The report, as well as the speakers, termed technology as a tool for development, not just a reward for development. They noted with concern the disparities in the spread of technology both between and and within counties.

Norway is now ranked first in the world in terms of HDI and Australia second. Both moved narrowly ahead of canada, the leader of the previous six years.

Sierra Leone, where a child born today will probably die before reaching the age of 39, and where only 32 per cent of the adults can read, is ranked last. The bottom 28 countries on the index are all in Africa.

On the Gender related Development Index (GDI), India ranks 105th among 146 countries. GDI measures achievements in the same dimensions and same indications as the HDI, but captures inequalities in achievement between men and women. It is simply the HDI adjusted downward for gender inequality. The report stresses that in this network age,any country that fails to make effective use of technology is likely to find itself falling behind in human development and marginalised in the global economy. It concludes that all countries, even the poorest, need to implement policies that encourage innovation, advanced skills and access to new technologies.

It argues that information and communications technology and biotechnology can actually make major contributions to reducing world poverty.

The report says the explosive expansion of global information and communications technology has triggered new opportunities for niche countries. In India the industry generated Rs 330 billion in 1999, 15 times the level in 1990, and exports rose from 150 million in 1990 to nearly four billion in 1999. One study estimates that this could rise to 50 billion dollars by 2008, leading information technology to account for 30 per cent of India’s exports and 7.5 per cent of its GDP. Employment in the software industry is projected to rise from 180,000 in 1998 to 2.2 million in 2008,to account for eight per cent of India’s formal employment.

The report said India loses two billion dollars a year in resources because of migration of computer professionals to the United Nations alone. It makes no mention of Indian remittances home.

About 100,000 Indian are expected to emigrate each year after new visas were approved in the united states last October, and the average total cost of educating each one of them was between 15,000 and 20,000 dollars, adds the report.

The success of Indian diaspora in Silicon Valley ..Appears to be influencing how the world views India, by creating a sort of branding , the report said. (UNI)