Excelsior... Nation

Jayalalitha

AIADMK willing to join
ministry in Pondicherry

CHENNAI, May 23: The AIADMK today said the party was willing to join the Congress-TMC ministry in Pondicherry, if an offer was made.....more

M Karunanidhi

DMK revamps
party structure

CHENNAI, May 23: The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which suffered one of its worst defeat in the just concluded Assembly elections....more

DMA to study psychological
factors behind mass
hysteria of monkeyman

NEW DELHI, May 23: After rejecting the theory of existence and attacks by the ‘monkey-man,’...more

Arrested customs
officers remanded
in CBI custody

NEW DELHI, May 23: The three senior customs officials, including a Superintendent, who were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation....more

Ram Dhan dead

NEW DELHI, May 23: Ram Dhan, who formed the "young turk" group in Congress that was arrested during the 1975 emergency, died here today at .....more

Tourists from plains
head in large numbers
for Uttaranchal

DEHRA DUN, May 23: Tourists seeking a respite from a sweltering summer of the plains are collecting in the hilly laps of Garhwal and Kumaon, setting off what it is called the "tourist season" in....more

IAF chief denies blocking
of appointment of CDS

BEIJING, May 23: Air Chief Marshall A Y Tipnis today termed as "totally baseless" the charge that the air force was blocking the appointment of .....more

Arrested customs officers remanded in CBI custody

NEW DELHI, May 23: The three senior customs officials, including a Superintendent, who were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation......more

DMK revamps party structure

CHENNAI, May 23: The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which suffered one of its worst defeat in the just concluded Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, today revamped the party structure by appointing zonal coordinators after combining various districts in the state.

The DMK administrative committe, chaired by party president and former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, discussed threadbare the various factors that contributed for the party’s debacle in the elections and decided to revamp the party at the district level to make them more accountable.

Talking to newsmen after a more than two hour long marathon meeting at party headquarters "Anna Arivalayam" here, he said the zonal coordinators, mostly senior leaders of the party, would supervise the functioning of the 50 district secretaries and coordinate party works with them.

This arrangement would ensure effective functioning of the district secretaries and establish easy communication with the headquarters, he said.

Asked whether the appointment of zonal coordinators implied that the performances of the district secretaries were not not upto the mark in the elections, the DMK chief said only after discussing all these matters, the changes were made. It was only to make their services more effective, he added.

Former ministers Ko Si Mani, Veerapandi S Arumugam, Durai Murugan, T Kiruttinan, K N Nehru, K Ponmudi, N K K Periasamy, Pongalur N Palanisamy, M R K Panneerselvam, K Pitchandi, I Periyasamy and N Periyasamy were among the zonal coordinators.

The meeting in a resolution, thanked the 1.08 crore people who had voted for the DMK-led front, amidst various disinformation campaigns launched by the AIADMK.

In another resolution, it condemned the arrest of party MLA and outgoing Deputy Speaker Parithi Ilamvazhuthi after foisting a case against him. It demanded that the Jayalalitha Government immediately release of Mr Ilamvazhuthi and other party functionaries who were arrested in connection with the case.

The administrative committee condoled the deaths of a Nedunzheyian, Salem West district secretary and son of former minister Veerapandi S Arumugam, and Tirupattur V Muthu and Pollachi Nagaraj, the two party cadres who committed self immolation after the party’s defeat. (UNI)

DMA to study psychological factors behind
mass hysteria of monkeyman

NEW DELHI, May 23: After rejecting the theory of existence and attacks by the ‘monkey-man,’ the Delhi Medical Association (DMA) has decided to conduct a detailed investigation into the various psychological factors responsible for the spread of mass hysteria and to stop their recurrence in future.

The DMA had yesterday released an initial report of the fact finding expert committee which said the ‘monkey-man’ was nothing but a case of mass hysteria. "There is no monkey-man. If at all it exists, it does so only in your mind. It is a figment of imagination confined to a group of people with similar socio-economic, cultural and educational background."

Those claiming to be victims of the alleged monkey-man were actually going through psychological turmoil which temporarily suspends rational thinking allowing auto-suggestion to take over.

DMA President V K Monga, told UNI today that a rapid assessment study has been institued by the association to investigate mass hysteria created by the non-existent monkey-man who terrorised Delhiites during the past few weeks.

"The phenomenon of the elusive creature, rumours regarding which spread like wildfire within three-four days, should be thoroughly inquired into to prevent their recurrence. It would also be helpful to formulate a strategy for the future."

The study would be based on a survey of the affected population who claim to have sighted the monkey-man or were attacked by him. Special formats containing 50 points covering all aspects of the ‘monkey man’ would be circulated among them and based on their responses, psychiatrists would analyse why and how the rumours spread, he added. The dma would contact local corporators, police and other social workers to obtain information about people who had seen the ‘monkey-man’.

"It would be a detailed and scientific study. The results, which would be available within four to six weeks, "would equip the administration to deal, in future, with mass hysteria created by rumours based on superstitions," Dr Monga said.

He criticised the police and administration for not taking prompt action to stop the situation from getting out of control. The police, infact, fuelled the situation by saying that it was trying to capture the non-existent monkey man by increasing night vigil and announcing a reward.

"Instead of asking people not panic because of rumours and involving non-Government agencies and psychiatrists to allay the fears and apprehensions of the people, the police declared a reward for the capture of the non-existent monkey man," Dr Monga pointed out.

The DMA President also criticised the media’s coverage of the event. He said that by releasing computer generated images, sketches and graphic descriptions the media frightened people, who confused fiction with fact. This strengthened their belief in the existence of a non-existent monkey man.

"After seeing these images on television, many residents of Noida called to say that they had seen the creature. No authority came forward to dismiss this as imagination and by not doing so they abetted and tacitly propagated the belief."

He said that such mass hysterical syndromes were usually seen in economically weaker sections, coming from similar ethnic backgrounds and with dismally low educational levels. India, which had earlier witnessed ganesha idols drinking milk and stove and ring devtas, was more prone to such rumours because high levels of illiteracy.

He said that the only way to combat the monkey-man was not to panic but to fight fear that exists inside and not spread rumours or indulge in pranks.

The adjectives used to describe the monkey-man such as its claws, size, ability to jump and fly, vanish or having remote or laser lights was all rubbish, but since it caught people’s fancy and reinforced their belief in the supernatural, rumours spread rapidly. (UNI)

Arrested customs officers remanded in CBI custody

NEW DELHI, May 23: The three senior customs officials, including a Superintendent, who were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) yesterday on charges of conspiring with Uzbek national Olga Kozireva for smuggling Chinese silk into the country were today remanded in CBI custody.

Special CBI Judge R L Chug remanded the three — Sudhir Sharma (Air Customs Superintendent) and R N Zutshi and V K Khurana (both inspectors) in CBI custody till June six. The three officials have been placed under suspension after the smuggling racket came to light in March.

The arrests were made following disclosures by Olga and Del Agha, an Afghan national. CBI claim that there is strong evidence against these officers.

The FIR filed against the officers has booked them under sections 120 B and 420 of Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

"These officers entered into criminal conspiracy with Mamoor Khan and Del Agha for clearing the baggage of Chinese silk brought by uzbek nationals Olga and Nazira Ibragimove without payment of duties or much less duties, causing loss of crores of rupees to the exchequer," the CBI has charged.

Olga, who was arrested on August 28 last year under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling (Activities) Act (COFEPOSA), is in judicial custody under while Del Agha was granted interim anticipatory bail for ten days by Delhi High Court yesterday.

Agha and his accomplice Mamoor Khan were reportedly helping Kozireva and had fled before the CBI carried out raids at the residences and official premises of 48 senior customs officials in March.

The CBI has sought the Uzbekistan Government’s help in identifying the network under which Kozireva had been smuggling goods into the country, besides filing a disproportionate assets case against some customs officials.

Kozireva was arrested on August 28 last year while allegedly trying to smuggle 81,000 yards of Chinese silk in 27 bags worth Rs 1.56 crore. According to an FIR filed in the designated court, Kozireva travelled to India 68 times last year. The CBI alleged that customs officials were paid 700 to 800 dollars for every large consignment and 400 dollars for the smaller ones.

The CBI is also probing Kozireva’s possible links with B P Verma who was removed as Chairman of the Central Board of Customs and Excise (CBCE) after CBI found evidence of his showing undue favours to a Chennai-based firm in return of financial gains. (UNI)

Ram Dhan dead

NEW DELHI, May 23: Ram Dhan, who formed the "young turk" group in Congress that was arrested during the 1975 emergency, died here today at the age of 80 after a brief illness.

Former general secretary of Congress and also secretary of the Congress parliamentary party, Ram Dhan was part of the socialist ‘ginger group’ within the Congress raising inconvenient issues.

Along with former Prime Minister Chandrashekhar, Vice President Krishan Kant and Mohan Dharia, who later became Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Ram Dhan was arrested on the night when emergency was declared by Indira Gandhi.

He made his parliamentary debut in 1967 from Ghosi in Uttar Pradesh and was subsequently elected to Lok Sabha in 1971, 1977, 1984 and 1989.

Ram Dhan, who had joined the Janata Party after emergency, rejoined Congress in 1980 along with late H N Bahuguna. Along with V P Singh he founded the Jan Morcha in 1987 to be its convenor.

Later, he became chairman of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission when Congress headed the Government between 1991 and 1996. (PTI)

Tourists from plains head in large
numbers for Uttaranchal

Dehra Dun, Mussoorie, Nainital, Dhanolti and other destinations in the Garhwal and Kumaon hills of Uttaranchal are busy these days receiving hordes of tourists from different parts of the country.

Mid-May to mid-July is considered the peak season for tourism in the state, most parts of which have a tourism-based economy.

Though there are countless beautiful valleys and hill-towns in Uttaranchal, Mussoorie and Nainital have remained the hot favourites with tourists over the decades. Developed by the British for beating the heat of the plains, both these hill-towns have a distinct European flavour even now.

Mussoorie waits throughout the long winter for the months of May, June and July when thousands of tourists from Delhi, Haryana, West Bengal, Mumbai, Chennai and several other parts of the country come to the "queen of hills" every year.

However, contrary to the past strength of Gujarati visitors, only few from the quake-hit state turned up at Uttaranchal this summer.

Authorities in Mussoorie are this time strict with traffic violators who often become a cause of parking problem. Traffic entry to the mall road is prohibited throughout the day.

With the ropeway functioning again, tourists are queuing up for the famous "gun hill". The red trolleys at "Jhoolaghar" on the are themselves a tourist attraction as they transport passengers up and down.

Though located at a distance from the heart of Mussoorie, kempti falls, as usual, are attracting large numbers of tourists to their cooling showers.

The Doon Valley, though not a very strong tourist attraction in itself, can be described as a confectionery mall. Confectioneries located on the Rajpur road are a special attraction to Mussoorie-bound tourists.

Conferences, seminars, workshops and training courses are held in Doon and Mussoorie by organisations based in various parts of the country during the summer months in order to combine work with a short holiday. Hotels now show full occupancy and trains are booked to capacity.

With Dehra Dun getting the status of the interim capital of the new state, several events of national importance are now being held here this summer, giving an unfamiliar air of heightened activity to the once quiet and sleepy town.

And Nainital, with its picturesque "Naini Jheel", is the jewel of Kumaon hills and was once the summer capital of Uttar Pradesh. Built around the lake, the lovely hill town remains a favourite summer tourist destination for people from all over India.

The Uttaranchal High Court is located in Nainital, giving it added importance. (UNI)

IAF chief denies blocking of appointment of CDS

BEIJING, May 23: Air Chief Marshall A Y Tipnis today termed as "totally baseless" the charge that the air force was blocking the appointment of India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) but acknowledged that it had "some reservations" on the concept of CDS.

"The air force has issued a clarification. I think it is not only a question on which the people are expressing their opinion but I think they are making insinuations which are totally baseless," Tipnis told PTI here when asked to comment on the controversy surrounding the appointment of the CDS.

Tipnis, who is currently here on a week-long official visit, acknowledged that the air force had "some differences" over the concept of the CDS.

"Of course, the air force has some reservations on the concept of the CDS," he said while supporting the move.

At the same time, tipnis stressed that the air force has "never talked about who should be CDS or who should not be CDS. "

"It is absolutely puerile to even think of it," he said while emphasising that he had never even thought of ‘disqualifying’ anybody from becoming the CDS.

The IAF chief’s comments comes as the controvery has reportedly led to the chief of the naval staff, Admiral Sushil Kumar, the front-runner for the post, withdrawing from the race.

Tipnis noted that the concept of the CDS has been recommended by the group of ministers and their recommendations has to be accepted by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).

Following the controversy, the Government has decided to keep the appointment of the CDS in abeyance.

Constituted after the K Subrahmanyam committee submitted its report on the Kargil conflict, the Arun Singh committee had suggested integration of defence headquarters with the Ministry of Defence and appointment of a CDS for coordinated action by the three services. (PTI)